Why “This Year Will Be Different” Is Our Favourite Lie
Every December 31st, right after the cake is cut and before the firecrackers fully fade, a familiar thought enters our minds with Olympic-level confidence: “This year will be different.” We say it with conviction. With hope. With a brand-new Notes app list titled 2026 Goals that includes waking up at 5 AM, drinking more water, reading 12 books, healing generational trauma, and finally replying to emails on time.
And somehow, by mid-January, we’re back to snoozing alarms, scrolling reels at 2 AM, and whispering, “Okay fine… next month.”
It’s easy to laugh at this cycle, but there’s something deeply human and psychological behind why “this year will be different” remains our most beloved lie.
Hope Is Not the Problem, Memory Is
Psychologists call this optimism bias which is our brain’s tendency to overestimate positive outcomes while underestimating obstacles. Every new year feels like a psychological reset button. The calendar changes, the font on Instagram changes, the vibe feels fresh. So our brain assumes we will change too.
But here’s the catch: we plan our future self using hope, not habit.
We imagine the calm, motivated version of ourselves like the one who meal preps, works out, journals, and sets boundaries like a TED Talk speaker. What we forget is that our future self still wakes up tired, still gets overwhelmed, still lives in the same system with traffic, deadlines, family expectations, and emotional baggage.
The lie isn’t intentional. It’s aspirational.
A Very Indian New Year Scene
Picture this: It’s January 1st. Your phone is flooded with “New Year, New Me” stories. Someone you barely know is running at 6 AM. Another person is manifesting abundance with beige aesthetics and a caption that says “soft life only.”
Meanwhile, your mother is asking if you’ll “at least start walking from tomorrow,” your relatives are already checking if your life is “settled,” and you’re mentally negotiating with yourself like, “I’ll start fresh from Monday. Monday has better energy.”
By the second week, reality returns. Office mails pile up. Motivation dips. Your gym bag becomes decorative. The reels keep coming, but your discipline doesn’t.
And slowly, guilt replaces hope.
Social Media Made the Lie Louder
Earlier, New Year resolutions were private promises. Now they’re public performances. Social media sells transformation like a limited-edition sale : glow up in 30 days, mindset shift in one reel, productivity in three steps. Watching other people “change their lives” in fast-forward makes us feel like we’re failing in real time.
But what we see online is a highlight reel - not the inconsistency, relapses, or emotional mess that real change involves. We don’t fail because we lack willpower; we fail because we underestimate how slow change actually is.
Why We Keep Believing It Anyway
Because believing feels better than giving up.
“This year will be different” isn’t just a lie, it’s emotional survival. It helps us carry disappointment without collapsing under it. It allows us to hope again, even if we’ve failed before. And honestly? That’s not weakness. That’s resilience wearing a festive outfit.
So What Actually Helps?
Real change doesn’t happen at midnight. It happens on random Tuesdays when you choose one small thing and do it again tomorrow.
- Instead of dramatic resolutions, aim for repeatable habits.
- Instead of perfection, aim for consistency with compassion.
- Instead of becoming a new person, focus on supporting the one you already are.
Growth isn’t loud. It doesn’t always make it to Instagram. Sometimes it looks like resting without guilt, saying no once, asking for help, or starting again quietly.
The Closing Credits
So if you find yourself saying “This year will be different” again, don’t beat yourself up.
And honestly? That’s more than enough. Because change doesn’t need a new year. It just needs a human willing to try...... again.
Written By : R. Sagarikaa, Editorial Head
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