It is that time of year once again where we vow to make changes in our lives in the coming 365 days as the current year comes to a close. Some of us resolve to get in better shape, spend less money, work harder, find a hobby, or volunteer more. Maybe you want to call your parents more often or stop eating red meat. Whatever your New Year's resolution may be, the goal is to keep it, not just put your plans out into the universe and watch them dissolve into thin air.
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As hard as resolutions are to keep, where you live may play a role in how successful you are in making those promises to yourself for the New Year lead to results. WalletHub, a personal finance website, recently released their report regarding the best and worst American cities for keeping your New Year's resolutions in 2018. Some cities help while others hinder those who want to do and be better in 2018.
More than 180 American cities were ranked "based on their conduciveness to self-improvement." 52 key metrics were reviewed which fell into one of these five dimensions: health resolutions, financial resolutions, school and work resolutions, bad-habit resolutions, and relationship resolutions. That about covers most of what we consider when making our New Year's vows.
Within these dimensions, factors including percentage of obese adults, percentage of adults who do not exercise, median annual income, median credit score, unemployment rate, prevalence of binge/heavy drinking, percentage of adult smokers, number of restaurants per capita, parkland acres per capita, etc. were measured. Using their unique methodology, WalletHub's team of experts evaluated their findings to rank these cities from best for keeping New Year's resolutions to the worst.
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If you are keen on keeping your 2018 New Year's resolutions, let's hope your city is one of the top 10 (#1 is best):
1.Seattle, WA
2.San Francisco, CA
3.San Diego, CA
4.Scottsdale, AZ
5.Salt Lake City, UT
6.San Jose, CA
7.Orlando, FL
8.Irvine, CA
9.Austin, TX
10.Portland, OR
And the bottom of the resolution-keeping barrel? These 10 cities ranked worst on WalletHub's list. Perhaps they'll resolve to climb to the top come 2019. (#1 is worst):
1.Gulfport, MS
2.Shreveport, LA
3.Newark, NJ
4.Jackson, MS
5.Detroit, MI
6.Augusta, GA
7.Montgomery, AL
8.Mobile, AL
9.Hialeah, FL
10.Columbus, GA
Did your city make the top or bottom 10? Will you let where you live determine your capacity to keep your New Year's resolutions this year? While we do not have control of all the environmental factors which surround us, we do have the ability to push through and do our best to make the self-improvement changes we long for.
And if you slip, slide right back in there. Baby steps will lead you towards your goal better than making unrealistic goals that are doomed to fail. Prioritizing and planning will help you evaluate your life and make smart resolutions that will make you a better version of yourself in the coming year. You have 'till 2019 to check in and reassess your work on yourself, so make every day count.
'Till then, have a happy New Year and ring it in with resolutions!
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