MADHURA
Resolution: Stop procrastinating.
"I take on a lot...I'm a senior in Ross, I'm in various clubs, I value my time with friends, and I also work. So, as my resolution I decided to stop procrastinating (because I oftentimes feel super overwhelmed). I found that for the first week or so I was more on top of my stuff, but within a few weeks into the semester I stopped thinking 'Madhura don't procrastinate!' and the overwhelmed feeling started sinking in once again. If I could do it over, I'd definitely make a more specific goal for myself. Something like take 10 minutes in the morning to plan out my day so that I'd be more successful."
SHANNON
Resolution: Spend more time with people I love.
"The thought of graduation definitely has scared me...all my closest friends are here, and it's been amazing to go to the same school as my sister, also. So, my goal was to spend as much time with the people I love to make the most of this last semester. I feel that overall, I was pretty successful at this. I have made a point of making time for my friends during the week and even went on spring break with my closest gal pals. I kept close with my sister, too, as a result of us being in the same dance recital. Overall, I think I have been extremely successful at this resolution because it was something super important to me. Although, I definitely am still going to miss everyone!!"
CINDY
Resolution: Eat healthier.
"Exercising and eating healthy is super important to me, so I wanted to make sure I put emphasis on this with 2017. I found that 'eating healthier' was a bit of a challenge since I didn't know if that meant I wasn't allowed to eat desserts. This made my urges to eat sweets stronger since I felt that they were something I couldn't have. Plus, I have a huge sweet tooth. I think that overall, I ate relatively healthy this semester - I pushed myself to cook more meals at home to accomplish this. However, I think if I had set more specific goals along the way I would have been much more successful. Like if I had told myself that I had to have a certain amount of fruits and veggies a day then I would've been better."
MIRANDA
Resolution: Become more organized.
"My resolution was a huge fail. I mean, what does 'become more organized' even mean?? I don't even know. I think it was my way of setting a resolution half-heartedly and not following through with it. I cleaned my room once at the beginning of the new year and that was that. If I had actually taken this more seriously I may have said 'organize day better' or 'clean room once a week' or something like that. Those seem like more attainable goals. Now I just have a super messy room to take care of before moving out...joy."
RACHEL
Resolution: Get myself a job.
"Kidding aside, I really did want to line up a job for after graduation! The reason I chose this as my resolution was because I recently decided that I really want a career in marketing, so I gave up my other job offer that was in accounting. So, more than anything this was a 'pursue your dreams' kind of resolution. Although I am still freaking out because nothing has worked out for me yet, having this resolution has pushed me to apply for jobs all semester and really take on challenges in school to build up my resume. I think I was pretty successful at the steps to getting there...but I am still waiting to hear back from so many companies. Fingers crossed!!"
Observational research
As part of my research, I spent a semester following five other girl's resolutions for 2017. Below you will find each person's story as well as their advice and comments on the journey.