This month people across the world and the people across the hallways of Normal West are making the infamous decision to make New Year’s resolutions. Resolutions vary from the typical (and not so successful) weight loss goals, hitting the gym more often, eating better to saving money.

What doesn’t change are the statistics which prove more often than not, resolutions are a bust. Time.com shares the top 10 broken New Year’s resolutions: “lose weight and get fit, quit smoking, learn something new, eat healthier and diet, get out of debt and save money, spend more time with family, travel to new places, be less stressed, volunteer, and drink less.” While this particular list displayed the most common broken resolutions, plenty other resolutions are correspondingly made and broken.

Creditdonkey.com reveals that while 45% of Americans make resolutions at the beginning of January, only 8% maintain them by the end of the month; only one in three people keep their resolution for 31 days. Unfortunately, the numbers prove that your “new year, new you” goal will most likely not be met. So here’s a crazy solution: don’t make New Year’s Resolutions.

Studies from creditdonkey show that 40% of people forget about their New Year’s resolutions after three months, and 60% have dropped their new habit entirely after only six. We all want to better ourselves, but why choose the new year to do it? Because we all think THIS year is the year we’ll change. But guess what? There are 365 days in a year, and we can choose any other day to make goals in our lives. While the thought of a new year may intrigue you, it won’t necessarily motivate you.

For those looking to make improvements in their lives, I offer the proposition that you should make changes over time, at any time. So many of us wait around to break bad habits and say “I’ll stop smoking when the new year comes” or they choose to take on a task they aren’t ready for because they feel that January 1^st is the perfect time to join a gym! Often times relying on this date causes failure, because it’s not the right time for changes to be made. Beginning new habits require more motivation than recognizing a popular date; it requires time, energy, and planning. Psycologytoday.com exposed Timothy Pychyl’s (professor of psychology at Carleton University in Canada) view on resolutions. He said that resolutions “are a form of cultural procrastination, an effort to reinvent oneself.” Pychyl continued by saying, “(at this time) people aren’t ready to change their habits, particularly bad habits, and that accounts for the high failure rate.”

New Year’s resolutions are not completely impossible, but they most likely won’t be successful, and if you want to set a goal, choose a time that’ll benefit you most; not this notorious holiday.