The decade is reaching its end and each one of us personally reviews the preceding ten years. Naturally, the decade of 2010 passed with less difficulty for some and more difficulty for others but there is room for improvement for everyone and each one of us personally knows how they would like to see themselves in 2030.
Hence, after the review, it is time for the goals of the new decade, the widely-known “new decade resolutions”. Some have adopted them as yearly habits while others are more reluctant and think that you should set goals on a daily basis and not just on the first day of the year. Of course, every day is ideal for you to redefine your life, but the first month of the year is an appropriate time for new plans, as it signals a new beginning and everybody seems to be overwhelmed with a feeling of rejuvenation and creativity.
This year things are slightly different, as we are called to set goals for the entire decade. This may sound unfeasible, but if we think about it, time passes by so fast and maybe if we set long-term goals, we will be able to handle more effectively the excessive speed with which our lives move forward.
Short-term goals, such as “I want to lose 10 pounds” or “I want to buy a new phone”, definitely don’t fit in this year’s list, because they can by definition be achieved within a shorter period of time and also because the gratification you receive after their achievement does not last for a whole decade.
Consequently, we must concentrate on goals that are meaningful and that, when the time of review comes again, will make us feel proud of having achieved them. In these goals we can include anything that could lead to self-improvement and the improvement of the image we have of ourselves, anything that has to do with our relationships with other people, whether they already exist in our lives, whether we would really like them to come into our lives or whether we would prefer the next decade to meet us as far away from them as possible. In addition, this list can include our wildest dreams, those ones that right now we don’t even dare to admit to ourselves, but we very well know how much we would like to realize them. In short, this list does not include objects but feelings, because these are what lasts and the certainty that, no matter how many years pass by, the list will not fade away but will remain ever so relevant.
This year’s “resolutions” have a greater significance, because the concept of the decade by definition creates an atmosphere of eagerness combined with a dose of anxiety about what is going to come into our lives. In reality, decades are constructed divisions of time, a convention that serves people who have always wanted to define time. The fact that humans themselves chose number ten shows us that a decade constitutes a breeding ground for plans, dreams and, more generally, the organization of our life.
As utopian then as it may seem, let’s try this year to write down our personal goals for the new decade, without the fear that we might not have enough time to achieve them and without the restrictions that material goods impose on us. And let’s not forget to glance at our short or long list every year, since after all ten years are not so many and we have to begin chasing even our wildest dreams today!
Translation: Asimenia Chliara
Review: Niki Saridaki