By Elina Suri

Resolutions can be made all year round; however, a new year signals a fresh start and, with it, a renewed motivation to work towards a goal! The tradition of creating New Year’s resolutions is as ubiquitous as celebrations to ring in the new year. However, the number of people who are able to adhere to their resolutions and see them to fruition are few and far between. As February comes around, I decided to follow up with some Winsor students from the Class of 2026 to see how organization and time management helped them in pursuing their resolutions thus far.

Emma Birdsong ’26 said, “One of my resolutions is to have more free time since I’m often overloaded with lots of homework and activities. I’ve been working towards this goal by trying to improve my efficiency. I’ve found that Pomodoro timers (a time management method based on 25 minutes of focused work followed by a five-minute break) help me when I have to finish something that may be difficult and needs to be done fast. Habit trackers are also very helpful for motivation to keep up with resolutions.”

Another student, Theo Zarrow ’26, shared her resolution to spend more time outside, especially during the cold winter season. She noted, “To work towards my resolution, I have been going outside to play with my little brother. I suggest that people trying to work towards a resolution use the resources around them, such as family and the people who want to help you.”

Kelly Yin ’26 added, “I find that adding events to my Google calendar is very helpful. For those trying to pursue a New Year’s resolution, I recommend focusing on organization as a first step!”

From the success of these students, we can learn that developing an action plan for a resolution is very important. An action plan can facilitate the discipline and commitment needed to achieve a goal. We are fortunate that modern technology gives us access to an array of apps for tracking our goals and for motivation. Increased connectivity allows us to recruit the support of friends and family to improve accountability.