Looking to the light at the end of the tunnel

Resolution-makers are more optimistic, say Heather Owen and Jason Allsopp.

January small talk with friends, family and colleagues often touches on the question of whether we make new year's resolutions.

According to Leger's biweekly North American Tracker, 22 per cent of Canadians plan on setting one or more new year's resolutions in 2021, with the percentage of resolution-makers up slightly from 2020 (19 per cent). With Canadians (and likely the world) agreeing almost universally that 2020 was a rough year and expressing real uncertainty about the future, it's interesting to see the proportion of resolution-makers hold steady.

Leger's most recent research shows that the percentage of Canadians who report positive mental health is at its lowest point since the start of the pandemic (33 per cent). Can generic commitments like being more active or improving one's financial situation really help? Setting a new year's resolution in a time of uncertainty may seem fruitless, but it may also help us see a light at the end of the tunnel.

Our survey showed that those who make resolutions are also more likely to report positive things they focused on during the pandemic. They may have been unable to engage in their usual activities, but they found opportunities to explore new experiences such as a new hobby.

With many of us now working from home, it may be hard to picture going back to work in person again. However, Canadians who made a new year's resolution are significantly more comfortable with the idea of going back into their workplace/office once the government lifts the protective measures in place to fight COVID-19. Perhaps unsurprisingly, they're also keen to return to gyms or other fitness facilities.

For some, 2021 will be a year of making up for 2020. The pandemic pressed “pause” on many of our usual activities. Nonetheless, we should start to see these activities ramp up again in 2021. The resolution-makers are looking toward the future, believing that some good things will happen: the start of a new business, a vacation outside of Canada, finding a new partner through their dating app or even that a Canadian team might win the Stanley Cup.

It's important to note that resolution-makers aren't unbridled optimists. With 2020 hindsight, resolution-makers and non-resolution-makers felt the same way about how the year went down.

While it may be difficult to look beyond the current health and economic situation, Canadians who started the new year by setting a resolution can bring confidence that we could all use after a very exhausting year. As with every other annual turnover, there will not be a magical solution to help us keep our promises to be healthier or curb our bad habits.

However, the simple act of setting a personal goal can bring some much-needed optimism to our lives and help us look to the future instead of feeling mired in the morass of COVID -19.