Hi friends. It’s been one week of saying no to bread at Sweetgreen and running to the bathroom mid-meeting with our mics on mute because drinking two gallons of lemon water a day has repercussions. Idk about you, but my skin is not yet flawless, my anxiety has not yet disappeared, and it’s still the same old me in a new year.

Don’t get me wrong: Goal-setting is great! I’m a huge fan! But I’m also human, and I’m pretty sure you are too. So let’s get real about New Year's resolutions…and how not to hold yourself to a standard of “handstand on the summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro” every year.

—Rod

Evolve to Resolve

Last New Year’s Day, I told myself I would only buy iced coffee twice a week. By the second week of January, I had enough punches on my neighborhood coffee shop’s loyalty card to become part owner. 🥴

It’s because I’d set an unrealistic goal. Once I realized that I’m not Ty Pennington and my life is not Extreme Makeover: Me Edition, all the unpleasant pressure of “new year, new me” finally went poof and I could focus on what really mattered: creating better habits.

Habits that lasted well past Q1. Habits that gave me time to implement a new routine instead of expecting a Brand New Rod™ in the first 7–10 business days of the year.

I learned that in order to resolve, I had to evolve, and that takes time, patience, and commitment. Soooo, with that, here are a few healthy goal-setting, habit-improving tips that have helped me. 

⚠️ It’s Time to Be Real ⚠️

The only time it’s *really* okay to lie to yourself is when you’re tallying how many hot dogs you ate on July 4th. Every other day of the year, being realistic is your best bet.

Take a resolution about saving money so you don’t have to work ’til you’re 87—you gotta be honest about the fact that reaching your financial goals doesn’t mean you have to (or can) go cold turkey on that late-night DoorDash habit. You can be realistic about wanting to spend on fun things without torching your 401(k). In fact, there’s an app for that (actually several)!

Meeting realistic goals comes easier than meeting outlandish ones—and everyone knows goals are like dominoes. Once you hit one, the rest start to go down easy.

Communication skills? Oh we got ’em

Some goals are personal, like no TikTok 20 minutes before bed. Others require input from people in your orbit. If you’re making one that’s not a solo mission this year, it’s time to dust off those communication skills.

Hoping for a promotion this year? Manifesting only gets you so far. Talk to your boss and find out what needs to be done in order to get that promotion, and then figure out if you’re willing to put in the work.

There are no small parts…

I said “no TikTok 20 minutes before bed” as if it were possible. It’s not—at least not right now. But I know I can work up to that if I take the goal in small steps.

That goal-setting tip really helped me with my ~fitness journey~ last year. I was ready to stop ignoring my smartwatch’s passive aggressive “get up and move” notification, but I wasn’t quite ready for the big leagues (Kendall’s 30-Minute Metal Ride).

So I started small, just moving my body a few times a week. I took what I needed and you should, too—whether it’s practicing yoga, playing pickleball, or throwing it back to some Tae Bo with Billy Blanks. One step (or right hook) at a time.

Our second-favorite B-word

Boundaries! It’s okay to say “no” to a goal…but also to something that might get in the way of the healthy habits you’re trying to sustain. You don’t have to go to every bottomless brunch, you can’t please every single person in your life, and it’s good for you to make time for yourself to sleep in or read a book or binge The Mindy Project.

Bottom line: Making outlandish resolutions you’ll never meet is out, taking small and realistic steps toward building lasting habits is in. Because we all know what happens when you make a resolution you really shouldn’t have…

Things to Slack your work besties

…as you cancel your workout class to go to happy hour.

Shopify is eliminating all recurring meetings with two or more people to free up employee time for other tasks. While I stand by the belief that most meetings are pointless, hit reply and let me know what you think about this. Do we like it? Do we not?

If I asked you how long ago cronuts and the song “What Does the Fox Say” were popular, you would say either 1904 or 2021, right? But it was 2013, which is now *gulps* one decade ago. Did the biggest trends from 2013—which simultaneously feels like two lifetimes ago and last year—stand the test of time?

It’s a masterpiece. Julia Fox revealed her best celebrity date involved being gifted Chanel bags and cuddling on a private jet with an A-lister, one who, to our knowledge, has never been married to Miss Kimberly Kardashian. Want to guess who the man in question is?

That’s all for today, thanks so much for reading! I’ll see you on Friday when I answer more of your burning Qs. In the meantime, be kind to yourselves. You’re doing great.

IDK WHAT DO I KNOW?! LMAO!

—Rod