5, 4, 3, 2, 1 … Happy New Year! What is your New Year’s resolution? You might say, “I am going to quit smoking and get in shape.”

Fast-forward about four weeks and 80 percent of Americans have already broken or forgotten their resolution, according to a study by the University of Minnesota.

Perhaps because of this, many people have decided not to make a New Year’s resolution, and I am one of them. However, it is not because I am lazy.

This revelation came to me on New Year’s Eve when I was thinking about what my resolution for the year could be. As I struggled to find something that I wanted to change, I realized that anything I want to change about myself does not need to start on Jan. 1.

I talked to three NIU students about this and they gave me their points of view about New Year’s resolutions.

Senior communication major Cretia Kirkwood decided to make a resolution to “become healthier and more in touch with my spiritual side.”

“The New Year is a great time to start over fresh,” she said.

This seems to be a common theme in most resolutions because to most, the New Year is a new beginning. But why do people wait until the first of the year for a new beginning?

Dana Cali, a sophomore criminology and psychology double major, also made a resolution “to manage my stress and do things for myself.”

“I’ve been really stressed during the school year, but I do think change can happen at any time,” she said.

That is my entire argument.

If you want to change something about yourself, you do not have to wait until the first of the year. You could wake up on April 27 and realize you need to change something about your life. That day could be your own personal New Year’s Day.

Meteorology major Alan Black also did not make a resolution for the year of 2005.

“I made no resolution because I do not believe in New Year’s resolutions,” he said. “People do not keep them.”

This may sound cynical, but I believe it to be just harsh realism.

I am not saying you should not have goals. You have to want to improve yourself and make changes to better your life. However, just imagine how most people spend their New Year’s Eve: Usually, it’s not in a sober state.

Avoid pigeonholing yourself into doing something and waiting to do it until the first of the year. The minute inspiration hits you, you should just do it because at that moment you have the passion and enthusiasm to make a change in your life.

Change is constant and inspiration can be fleeting. Do not procrastinate and wait for an inebriated event-filled New Year’s Eve to make a transition in your life when inspiration could be happening … right now.

Columns reflect the opinion of the author and not necessarily that of the Northern Star staff.