I know it’s strange, but I like going to the dentist. Why, you ask? Well, it is normally a very encouraging experience for me. “Keep doing what you’re doing”, “What great looking hygiene!” and “Looks great, what color toothbrush would you like?” These are the typical affirmations that I get.
Until this visit.
“A filling is pulling away from your tooth, we’ll have to replace it. Have you been wearing your mouthguard?”
Hmm, the truthful answer to that was an unqualified NO. Not for at least five years. I hadn’t felt any jaw pain or tightness, so I’d figured I didn’t really need to wear it. And, after all the affirming visits, my decision felt sound.
When I told my hygienist as much, she said, “Oh, you should definitely wear your mouthguard, it’ll prevent this stuff from happening again.” And then she continued her cleaning.
With her hands in my mouth, my thoughts went something like this:
- How can she know this isn’t happening due to the wear and tear of chewing?
- The mouthguard helping is just a THEORY.
- I don’t like this mouthguard very much.
- I’m not gonna wear it.
As the visit continued, I saw the unmistakable pattern in me. There’s the gentle encouragement towards something that would presumably be good for me. I listen, discount it, and then I don’t do the thing that was encouraged. So, I said,
“If I’m honest, I’m going to need a better speech about mouthguards to leave here committed to wearing mine.”
My hygienist, with this prompt, put down her instruments, pulled down her mask, gave all the signals of a “hold my beer” moment and launched into a speech so compelling about mouthguards that I’m now convinced that everyone should sleep with one of these things in their mouths. Seriously, if you don’t have one, and you care about your enamel, you gotta do this!
This got me thinking about how common it is to quit commitments this time of year.
If you haven’t heard, the second Friday of the year is considered “Quitters Day”. It’s the day that most of us give up on our New Year’s Resolutions. Some of them might just need to go, but others, if abandoned, are going to leave you filled with regret and a dinged belief in your ability to make important changes.
So, do you need a better speech like I did? Do you need to revisit the whys of your 2026 commitments? Which of them really do mean something to you? Which were made in haste, or for shallow reasons?
What do you—truly and deeply—want 2026 to be like? If you’ve lapsed on your resolutions, it isn’t too late!
- You really might need a better speech. Do the research, find the YouTube video that explains the benefits of your goal, reread the article that got you excited about it in the first place. Amp up your reasons to be motivated to keep this.
- Find a community for support. There are countless other people that you know who are waffling in their New Year’s commitment too. Ask around and find a tribe to support you in your effort. They could probably use it too!
- Modify your goal, if it helps you persist. Maybe you decided to give up sugar, or alcohol, or social media. Could it still be a win to reduce rather than completely quit these things? A year of less sugar, alcohol, or social media might be far better than another year at the previous levels. Or maybe you committed to 10,000 steps per day, or daily devotions. If 7,000 steps or 3 devotions a week is more realistic, embrace the modification and give yourself the gift of doable goals.
Please add your ideas in the comments below.
One Response
Janice, I love this edition of your newsletter! You had me at “Hold my beer.” For military aviators like me, it’s “watch this.” Whenever someone says that, something bad is about to happen.
In case you missed it, Shankar Vedantam’s recent episode on dopamine & addiction is a great re-inforcement of your words on New Year’s resolutions. https://www.hiddenbrain.org/podcast/the-paradox-of-pleasure/
Thanks for the encouragement, may you have a blessed & prosperous 2026.
Warm regards,
Russ