It’s New Year’s! Time for Resolutions…and a Second Grade Math Lesson? By Dr. Laura Triplett

It’s New Year’s!  Time for Resolutions…and a Second Grade Math Lesson?

By Dr. Laura Triplett

 

Mrs. Mackowen was my second grade teacher.  Now, she’s little more than a blurry memory, but some of the things I learned in her class continue to find use and purpose some 23 years later.  For instance, simple division.  Learning how to divide four by two or twenty by five has come in handy innumerable times, but never is simple division more relevant than during New Year’s. 

 

Right now, we’re surrounded by three types of people:  First, there are those who are casually tossing around lofty resolutions that we all know are totally bogus, albeit well-intentioned (you just gotta love someone who honestly believes and wholeheartedly pledges to become fluent in Chinese, become a professional Irish high-stepper and join Michael Flatley’s dance troupe, take a summer tour of America’s national parks (becoming a professional conservationist along the way), and forgo cheese…and trust me, I do believe I’ll be able to accomplish all of this).  Second, we have those who make resolutions with such seriousness that if you even dare to question the feasibility of said resolutions, the resolver will, quite literally, burst into flames (not surprisingly, I do become irritable when someone questions my potential capability for high-stepping).  And finally, there are the realists (or you might consider them the party poopers) who refuse to even acknowledge that we’ve entered into a new year, let alone resolve to do or become something different (Greg, are you reading this?  In all fairness, there’s no need to change when you’re already perfect).

 

But, let’s get back to Mrs. Mackowen’s simple division and what role it plays in kicking-off 2009.  Most of us go overboard with our resolutions.  The majority of New Year’s resolutions are about eating less, exercising more, getting in shape or looking better.  These resolutions typically come in the form of, “I resolve to lose 100 pounds!” or “I will exercise for two hours every day!” or “I’ll never order dessert again!” or “I resolve to be back to the same size I wore in high school by summer!”  No doubt, these are winning resolutions, but they are not realistic.  By mid-January – and that’s giving the benefit of the doubt – these resolutions have done nothing other than give a swift kick to our self-esteem.  Not only did we jump ship when it came to working toward our goals, but worse than that, we beat ourselves up for resolving to do things we knew we could not possibly do.  Too bad we didn’t resolve to set ourselves up for failure.  That’s one resolution at which we all could succeed!

 

But, hang on.  Hope is far from lost.  It’s still early January and if you are holding out hope to make your resolutions a reality employ simple division.  That’s right, divide each resolution by half (or more, if necessary).  If you said you would lose 100, turn it into 50.  If you said you would exercise two hours every day, go with one hour three times a week.  If you said you would become fluent in Chinese, enroll in Berlitz and pick up enough of the language to sound as though you’ve just returned from some totally glamorous humanitarian mission.  Learn to high-step to the point that your Dad will say, next time he’s watching the Irish dance PBS special, that “you should really be up on that stage!” 

 

Resolutions are mostly fun, but they can also be meaningful and achievable.  This year, resolve to set yourself up for success, instead of failure.  Think of Mrs. Mackowen and her simple division.  And then, when you surpass the low-bar you’ve set for yourself, just think about how good you’re going to feel when you “casually” (i.e., forcefully) mention to everyone you know (and strangers, too) that you resolved to “lose a few,” but you obviously didn’t recognize your own potential and motivation because you are already well past that meager resolution you set back at the start of the year.  “I’ve learned my lesson about expecting too little from myself,” you’ll say in an oh-so-casual tone, “Next year, I’m going to make my resolutions more reflective of my strong willpower and endless capabilities.”