Kicking off the new year with a new intention is a great way to set your mind to reaching your life goals. Jan. 1 is a classic marker for changing old habits, refreshing your outlook, going for what you really want, and resetting your health and wellness routines – and there's so much good in all of that. But where to start?
This list will help you uncover new year resolution ideas, big and small, that fit into your life goals. Whether you're looking to advance your career, build new relationships or nurture existing ones, act on your values, or simply start healthier habits, this list of 70 new year resolution ideas will spark your creativity and inspire you to get started on something fulfilling.
We dug into our archives for new year resolution ideas for a healthier, happier, more productive you. Sticking to a resolution for 365 days can be tricky though so here's some advice:
- Create a realistic plan. Focus on key goals that are most important to you. Sure, we might want to do most of the things on this list but what do you really want to accomplish in 2024? Be specific and make a clear plan on how you'll get there.
- Break up your goal in small steps. If something feels too overwhelming, consider breaking it into smaller tasks that you can more easily accomplish.
- Stay accountable. Give yourself monthly goals and let friends know what you're trying to do so they can cheer you on and provide support.
- Track your progress. Use a planner, notebook, or app to track your progress for more motivation.
- Stay positive. You can achieve anything with a positive mindset. But sometimes life throws us some curveballs. If you slip, move on and keep going. You can do this!
- Reward yourself. Treat yourself to small rewards at the end of each month once you've accomplished something toward your end goal.
- Visualize success. Visualizing what you want out of your resolution will help you stay committed and motivated along the way.
Now that you know how to stick your new year resolutions, take a look at our list of 70 new year resolution ideas for inspiration going into 2024. Happy new year to you!
Host Regular Friend Dinners
Photo by fauxels
Commit to making a monthly or bi-monthly dinner date with the friends you love most. Life can get in the way, but these are the memories you'll always value in life. Take turns hosting and turn it into a dinner club. Here are quick and easy dinner ideas to try out throughout the year!
Start Journaling Like Emma Watson
Photo: British Vogue/YouTube
Journaling can help you put things into perspective and get more in touch with your emotions. It can also help you sleep better by putting your thoughts on paper first! In British Vogue's In The Bag, Emma Watson explains how important journaling has become in her life. Here's what Emma has to say about her journaling practice.
Create An Inspiring Vision Board
Photo by cottonbro studio
Vision boards are one of the most effective tools that you can use to build your business, nurture your romantic life, and reach your creative goals. The process can bring clarity to your thinking, focus to your plans, and can leave you with a curated visual + tangible reminder of the life you want to build. Here's how to get started to create your own vision board for 2024.
Eat Breakfast In Bed More Often
Photo by Ngakan eka
We're so quick to look at our phones and jump out of bed and hit our laptops. Rather than make breakfast in bed a once-a-year type of activity, turn it into a common practice. You'll connect better with your partner and yourself. Here are easy breakfast recipes to eat in bed throughout 2024.
Create A Morning Ritual
Photo by Blue Bird
A morning ritual that doesn't involve working the minute you wake up can clear your mind, calm your nervous system, and prepare you mentally and physically for the day. Some morning ritual ideas: a skincare routine, a bike ride, a nature walk, journaling, drinking tea, reading a book, and more. Decide what would help you start your day on the best foot.
Become A Plant Lady
Photo by Blue Bird
Plants can clean the air you breathe, boost your mood, and increase your creativity. Embrace plants in your decor and bring the outdoors in! Make it a resolution to learn more about how to care for them.
Take A Yoga Challenge
Try our at-home yoga challenge or join a new studio, many of which have challenges for new members at a discount. Yoga can help improve digestion, mood, stress levels, and more.
Give Daily Compliments
Photo by Guilherme Almeida
Licensed psychologist Dr. Lauren Hazzouri says you can actually learn more about yourself and create more positivity around you by taking notes about what you see in others. Here are her thoughts on why heartfelt praise is so powerful and five super solid sentiments you can aim to share every day.
Delegate The Things You Don't Want To Do
Photo by Polina Zimmerman
Uncover the things that are taking up your time that you don't want to do and get support. Maybe it's cleaning your apartment or tasks at work that can be automated or maybe it's getting your laundry delivered. Delegate the tasks you don't love so you can focus your time on the things you do love.
Get Organized, One Day At A Time
Photo: Shutterstock
Overwhelmed by the clutter in your home? Dedicate each month to a new decluttering project. Bedroom Closets January, anyone? Donate or sell what you don't use and build an organizing system you can stick to. Here's more pro advice for decluttering your space.
Open Your Mind To New Stories
Want to read more books? Set out a plan to read the books you missed in 2023 and plan for the books you want to read in 2024, depending on your schedule. Maybe it's a book a month that you share with others, near and far?
Train For An Organized Run
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Want to get back on a running schedule? This is a great goal to try if you want to achieve a 5K, 10K, or even a marathon. New to running? Check out our running tips for learning to love it.
Make New Friends
Photo by ELEVATE
Is there a new acquaintance you want to know better? Or feeling like you're missing out on a community? Maybe you've just moved to a new city. Nurture new friendships in 2024 with these friendship tips.
Reconnect With Old Ones
Photo: Brit + Co
Reach out to old friends this year and reconnect in a more meaningful way with these thought-provoking questions to get to know your friends better. Make it a resolution to reach out to one old friend a month!
Plan Regular Dates With Your S.O.
Photo by Ron Lach
Connect with your partner one-on-one with these date night ideas for the whole year.
Judge Less, Communicate Better
Learn to communicate better by communicating to understand versus judge. We can all use better communication skills these days with people inside and outside our bubble.
Eat Healthy Most Of The Time
Photo by Akshata Bablad
Try Whole30 this January to uncover any allergies or an intermittent fasting schedule to lighten your load (and sleep better!). Whatever you do, do in moderation (indulging once in a while is OK!) and pick up healthy habits that you can sustain throughout the year.
Start An Exercise Routine You Love
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Exercise doesn't have to be a chore. Find a sport or activity that gives you the workout you need while also boosting your mood, expanding your friendship circle, and bringing you joy every day.
Eat Less Meat For You And The Planet
Beef production accounts for most of the greenhouse gas emissions of the entire food production industry, and leads to deforestation and loss of biodiversity, significant contributors to climate change. Vegetarian diets tend to have fewer calories and less fat too, and vegetarians have a lower risk of heart disease so you'll do good by you and the planet!
Make Drinking Water More Fun
Photo: Yaroslav Shuraev
Stay hydrated with more water in your 2024, whether you flavoring it a la TikTok, shopping the latest water bottles for on-the-go hydrating, or simply cutting back on soda and sugary drinks. All good things!
Improve Your Gut Health
Photo: Ella Olsson
Try an anti-inflammatory diet if you have a hard time getting rid of belly bulge or have health issues related to gut health. You'll feel and look better through 2024 and beyond!
Take Care Of Your Sexual Health
Photo:Bellesa Boutique.
Here's a reminder that you need to take care of your sexual health to ensure a healthy overall wellbeing. Sexual health includes self-esteem, personal attractiveness, competence, as well as freedom from sexual dysfunction, sexually transmitted diseases, and sexual assault/coercion. It goes beyond testing for STIs and fertility and rather encompasses just as many mental components as physical ones.
Quit Smoking
Photo by Maria Orlova
Add as much as a decade to your life and avoid a slew of health problems by quitting your smoking habit, even if it's just socially. Make a point of asking your doctor the best plan for you. We know this is a tough one -- and totally not unique -- but your health matters and this is a big one to reach your fullest potential!
Learn A New Language
Photo by Leeloo Thefirst
Download Duolingo, Babbel, Rosetta Stone or take a language course in person at a community college or community center. You might even want to find a local person who speaks the language you want to learn and meet for coffee once a week for IRL practice!
Improve Your Public Speaking Skills
Photo by Mikhail Nilov
Get over your fear of public speaking with these public speaking tips. Find ways to practice your new skills at work, at networking events, even weddings!
Learn How To Invest
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Women are still not investing at the rate that men are. Let's close the investing gap for good. Here's our ultimate beginner's guide to investing in the stock market. Try our free Investing 101 course and check out Nicole Lapin's The Money School, where our favorite finance pro shows you how to make your money grow and we mean really grow. You'll learn things like: how to create a budget, how to save for big life goals, how to buy a house and car, how to invest in the stock market and retirement accounts. This is truly the masterclass for all things money!
Launch A Side Hustle Or A Business
We're all about following your passion at Brit + Co and if you've had an idea for starting your own biz now is the time to take that first step. First, get over your fear of failure with these seven tips, then write out your business plan. Need a little motivation? Check out Brit + Co's Selfmade online business course, where you'll meet inspiring entrepreneurs who will help you get to the next level (all while Brit and her "Co" cheer you on!).
Plant A Garden
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio
Gardening has mood-boosting benefits and is a great way to clear your head and get creative. Given it may be snowing outside early in the year you can try an indoor herb garden for starters and come spring plan a bed or two outside for your favorite fruits and veggies.
Take A Creative Class
Learning something new about yourself or the world can be as easy as listening to a podcast, which is the whole premise for our Teach Me Something New podcast. Listen in on our chat with experts on meditation, cooking, mental health and more during your next drive or jog. Get creative too with more than 120 Brit + Co creative classes on everything from cake decorating to coding.
Drink Less Booze
Treating yourself to a Dry January might seem like a good idea right about now and it can mean better sleep, a cleaner gut and a host of other health benefits. You'll save money too and probably boost your productivity like Brit + Co'er Lindsey Graham-Jones experienced when she took a Dry July and B+C editor Meredith Holser tried Sober October. Not sure you can swing it? Try these mocktail recipes that are just as tasty sans the hard stuff.
Write Thank You Notes
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Send a little love to the people who make big and small differences in your year with old-school thank you or gratitude notes. You'll pay positive vibes forward and score greater feelings of happiness and (some studies show) lower levels of depression. Here are more health benefits worth giving this resolution a try.
Start A Spa Budget
Finding the time for self-care can be tough as work and life commitments start to pile on, which is why scheduling a regularly sesh is so needed. Put aside money each month for a regular spa day, or if money is tight try a solo hike or walk to recharge, take 10 minutes a day to treat yourself to meditation, online yoga, an article read, a mini massage or an impromptu call to a long-distance friend or family member.
Advance Your Career
Photo: Antoni Shkraba
Commit to taking a training or certification class to build your skills and advance your career.
Become A Mentor or Mentee
Photo by Christina Morillo
Have a skill or experience you can share? Find a mentorship program near you to connect with people in your industry. Need a mentor to coach you through your career? Check out these mentor tips or try Selfmade, our business and coaching course for new entrepreneurs.
Seek Out New Challenges At Work
Photo by RF._.studio
In a bit of a career rut? Rather than find a new job, look for new opportunities at work to build new skills, broaden your connections, and feel inspired. It may lead to a new role and promotion too!
Log Off More Often
Photo by Alex Gállego
Create better balance in 2024 by logging off and finding time to do things you love, like creating, reading, and socializing IRL.
Reduce Digital Clutter
Photo by Vlada Karpovich
This is a good resolution to break into smaller tasks. Make a plan to reduce your digital clutter by clearing work and personal inboxes, reducing your social media follows and accounts, and organizing photos and videos while backing up your digital files.
Start A Gratitude Jar
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Every day in 2024 write down the good things that happened that day and put it in a jar. At the end of the year, read all the good things that happened to you! This is a great activity to do with kids.
Start Therapy
Photo by Polina Tankilevitch
Finding the mental healthcare that fits all your needs can be very overwhelming. The internet is filled with self-proclaimed “mental health experts” and more information on mental health than someone ever could read in a lifetime, so here we help you narrow it down to the truly important deets. After all, if you believe that you could benefit from mental health services, you deserve the best information possible.
Shop Local
Photo by Amina Filkins
Give your community the boost it needs (and reduce your dependency on Amazon) by shopping local. You'll get out in the neighborhood, meet new people, and feel good knowing your local businesses have your support.
Learn A New Craft
Photo: Cottonbro Studio
Working with your hands is a great mental workout and inspires your creativity. Learn to sew, knit, make pottery or more at a local community center or via online classes.
Create An At-Home Workout
If working out in the middle of winter seems daunting, make an effort to create a little gym space at home. You'll save money on gym memberships and get in the routine of fitness in the comfort of your own home. Check out how IKEA can help with a new workout collection.
Give To A Farm Sanctuary
Photo by Leah Kelley
Farm sanctuaries protect farm animals who have been injured and rescued from factory farms. Share your time by volunteering or adopt a pet!
Visit Our National Parks
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Visit as many of the 63 national parks in the United States. Here are 11 national parks that are out of this world.
Write A Book
Photo by Mikhail Nilov
Have a book idea in your head but just not sure where to start? Try our tips for writing a book you'd actually want to read.
Give More Hugs
Photo by RDNE Stock
According to science, a 20-second hug helps reduce stress, relieves your blood pressure, and nurtures a healthy heart.
Treat Yourself
Photo by Yaroslav Shuraev
You went a month, a year, a lifetime reaching a goal you set out to do, not sure whether or not you will get there. But you did it. Treat yourself to the little things, a candlit bath, a massage, a pedicure, anything that brings you calm and joy and makes life more fulfilling to you.
