New Year, New Me: Resolutions, Redefinitions, and Releases

From bringing intentionality into 2025 to redefining New Year's resolution, here's what has been on my mind since Jan. 5, 2024.

Feb 01, 2025

Hello,

Happy New Year, and welcome to the official January issue of The Diamond Report. Los Angeles is burning, President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance have been turning the world upside down since Monday, Jan. 20, the South had real snow days, and TikTok officially shut down — and then came back 12 hours later. All of this, among other things, made for a chaotic start to the new year.

I’m still holding out some hope that there will be some peace in the midst of the storm. But, the only thing I know, for sure, is that this will still be my place to talk about it. Before you dive any deeper into this issue, I would like to welcome you to The Diamond Club. If you haven’t already, make sure to subscribe and come back next month (or maybe sooner) for more!

New Year … New Me?

When the ball dropped, albeit a few seconds late in New York, it kicked off the beginning of a new year. For many, the clock striking 12 signifies a fresh start and a new chance to do things differently.

For me, the last few days before the new year represents a moment of recalibration. It’s a time to look at where I am, where I came from and where I want to go. I don’t put that must pressure into New Year’s resolutions — partly because I don’t want to lock myself into this rigid list. However, in recent years, I’ve intentionally taken the time to think about my year ahead and what I want to see in it.

The Connotation of New Year’s Resolutions

New Year’s resolutions have garnered a bad reputation over the years. It may be because on average, only 9 to 12 percent of people keep their new year’s resolution by the end of the year.

I’m definitely guilty of not keeping up with my previous resolutions. For me, the list would always fall to the wayside. I’d either forget not to do something or be too tired to carry out a task. It’s was easy for me to view that as a failure, stop trying early and hope for the best next year. But, I think as I matured and came into who I am today, I began to redefine what a New Year resolution was for me.

The days leading up to a new year are now reserved for self-reflection and recommitting myself to my life goals. I don’t make this rigid list of do’s and don’ts. Instead, I take the time to think about the things that I want to accomplish and the changes that would help get me closer to them. With those goals in mind, I create a vision board centralized over one word that represents my theme for the year (this year, my word is intentionality). That vision board becomes the first thing I see when I unlock my computer, which keeps it at the forefront of my mind.

I may not accomplish every single thing on my vision board, but I’ve absolutely learned the power of manifesting the life I want. The vision board helps remind me to keep fighting for the life I want and that every day is a time to push for it.

What Do I Hope is in The Cards for Me in 2025?

This year, I’m leaning into all the things I love and pushing myself to try new things. Some of my previous goals are returning with an increase (For example, I increased my reading goal from 40 to 50 books for the year), and I added some new ones aligned with my overall life goals (For example, one of my financial goals is to save $3,000 this year).

Here are some of my goals for 2025:

Try Three New Things
Save $3,000
Read 50 Books
Prioritize Self-Love
Work With Less Procrastination

Oops … I Made A Small Typo. It’s Actually New Year, New Job!

I’m officially a PEOPLE Girl!

If you missed the memo on my socials, I am officially a PEOPLE girl!

I’ve been vying to work for PEOPLE since I graduated from Northwestern University in 2022. Getting this role is such a full circle moment for me, making every struggle and tear worth it.

As I settle in and begin my second full week at the magazine with over 30 articles already under my belt, it just reminds me to be patient, grateful and steady. Every moment on my journey prepared me for this.

Read all of my recently published PEOPLE stories online by clicking here.

January Releases: New, Interesting and Must-See

Due to the L.A. wildfires, the release dates for certain shows and the 30th Annual Critics Choice Awards were pushed back. This list is updated to account for that. Check out everything that premiered in January!