Decoding New Year’s resolutions

Dubai: It’s that time of year when we set goals for the forthcoming year — New Year’s resolutions. Gulf News spoke to psychologist Dr Martin Kramar about why people feel the need to make these resolutions. He said that it is an exercise in the pursuit of happiness.

“Change brings happiness and therefore, it is good to set goals for yourself. Then you have something to work on during the year.”

However, New Year’s resolutions have a tendency to fade after a few weeks.

“To activate change is not an easy step, but the fact that we make these resolutions is a reflection of our discipline and power of mind,” Dr Kramar said.

Our resolutions reflect our personalities and the ability to make a promise and to put it in practice. The fact that we visualise something that we want to accomplish feels like being one step ahead and crystallises the goal.

“Making a resolution for the upcoming year brings certain happiness. That, in turn, brings health. Everybody likes change that is good.”

There often tends to be a repetitive pattern when it comes to resolutions, such as losing weight and getting fit, that may or may not survive the year.

“Some resolutions are hard to maintain and it takes a few weeks before they fade away, because nothing is easy,” added Dr Kramar.

— Donia Jenabzadeh is a trainee with Gulf News