Worcester, MASS. - As we settle into 2025, the start of a new year can be a great time to become a better you.

“The most important question you want to ask yourself is what is my why?” said Courtney Council, a licensed mental health counselor at Thriveworks. “What is the reasoning behind this goal for me.”

When picking a New Year’s resolution, Council said to go for something attainable and use your strengths.

“We always want to do a goal around health. We always want to do a goal around career,” Council said. “Some people have goals around impact, like their goal is to give back and volunteer and some people have goals around where they want to see their personal development.”

Whether you’re setting out to eat a healthier diet or spend less money, Council said to start out small and build up to a bigger, long-term goal.

“Let’s say your end goal is you want to work out four times a week, but right now you don’t work out at all. To start the new year saying I’m going to work out four times a week is a great goal and something you totally want to do, but you want to give yourself space to build up to that,” Council said. “So building a consistent habit of maybe once a week.”

Council recommends avoiding an ‘all or nothing approach’ when working towards your goal. Instead, she said to forgive yourself when you mess up to avoid another slip up in the future.

“What things led to that pivot or that barrier or that mess up and what did you learn from that,” she said. “So you can teach yourself, 'listen, if I go to the grocery store and I buy cookies, that is not going to help me reach my goal'.”

To help keep you on track, try writing down your goals and make note of any progress.

“Start with the core. What are the things most important to you and what are the things that help you take care of you and track those things,” Council said. “So if journaling works for you, track that. If writing or running or going for a walk works for you, track that.”

Council said if you find yourself struggling to maintain too big of a goal, refer to why you started in the first place and readjust.