As the clock strikes midnight, millions of us make promises to ourselves on the first of January, but how many of us go through with them? Although getting started is the first hard step, sticking to that goal can be even harder. Baylor College of Medicine shows that 88 percent of people who set New Year resolutions fail within the first two weeks. How can we be a part of the 12 percent that do succeed? Well, with help from experienced Berkley High School students, you can learn how to achieve your personal goal for the “new year new you” without giving up in between.
If you are planning your goal around fitness or health, junior Stephanie Hornak has good tips, as she has been successful in many of her past New Year’s resolutions. She uses tools like the Nike Run app for structured guidance. She expressed, “My New Year’s resolution this year is to run a half marathon. After being disappointed about a basketball conflict, running helps me get my mind off of stressful situations.” When asked what techniques helped her stick to this goal, she replied, “I am using the Nike run app. It trains me throughout the weeks leading up to the race. It encourages me to stick to my plan, so I would recommend using it.” She even annually recites a quote she created while working towards her goal, which is “50% of something is 100% better than doing nothing.” This helps her remember that even if she didn’t fully accomplish her goal, she still tried. Other popular new year’s resolutions for 2025 that focus on wellness include drinking about 8 glasses of water a day, sleeping for at least 7 hours each night, and increasing the number of steps you take a day.

Similarly, Senior Jessie Mack wants to work on her personal growth by staying motivated and aligning goals with personal passions and values. She shared “In 2025, I want to stop caring so much about the little things. It helps to be surrounded by people that love and care about you, but also recognize the love you have for yourself. That is the most important type of love, especially when going into a new year.” She explained that “it is really hard to stick to a goal” and that recognizing it is important because “it helps you improve as long as you are passionate about what you hope to accomplish.”
Another senior, Margo Hartzell, wants to bring more of her attention to the effort she puts in. She uses the skill of increasing productivity through routines, reducing distractions, and breaking tasks into manageable steps.She describes “I plan to be more productive in 2025. It’s important to incentivise goals. Whenever I stick to a goal for a certain duration, I buy myself something fun as a reward.” When asked about methods that help her start, she continued “It isn’t necessarily how you start, but where you end up. I remind myself that if I do miss a day, I can pick it back up and continue where I left off.” More ways that can help you stay productive and active throughout 2025 are creating daily/nightly routines, minimizing unnecessary distractions, and organizing large tasks into smaller ones.
Achieving New Year’s resolutions often feels most challenging when you’re in the thick of working toward them. Many people struggle with fears of failure, a lack of commitment, or the overwhelming distractions of daily life. However, as these students have shown, it’s always better to try than to hold back out of fear. With fresh ideas for resolutions and practical tips for staying on track, you have the tools to make 2025 a year of growth and success.