Rethinking Resolutions with Generative AI

Why is it that nearly 80% of us abandon our New Year's Resolutions (NYR) by February? A lack of joy, perhaps. And maybe an absence of novelty. While there are many techniques to help us stick to our promises, what if it's the nature of the promises themselves that are tripping us up? Health, finance, and relationships tend to be at the core of most of our NYRs, and more often than not, we attach targets or hard boundaries that make them nearly impossible to stick to. Well, not this year. After a short conversation with a close friend, I was given this gem of wisdom that made me rethink resolutions altogether:

Make your New Year's Resolutions joyful, fun, and exciting - not restrictive.

Joyful Resolutions Over Restrictive Rules

The turning point this year is a shift of focus to the experience and journey over the outcome. But what might this look like? Here are a few that have been suggested to me so far (and feel free to share your own below):

• Pasta Shake-up: Mix up your meals by trying as many new and different pasta shapes as possible.

• Adventurous Ales: Explore different breweries and brews, collecting stamps on a Beer Passport as you go.

• Badminton Battles: Pick up a racket and have a go at different mini-games with novel rules and gameplay to create unpredictability.

  
  

These are all about new experiences, and I'm already excited about the prospect of trying these three.

How AI Can Be Recruited To Your Resolution Aid

So where does generative AI come into this? One of my favorite uses of tools like Gemini, Copilot, or ChatGPT is to tap into their creative brainstorming skills. Here’s a prompt you could tweak and use to get some inspiration like the above examples:

"You're a personal coach that specialises in the creation of fun and joyful New Year's Resolutions. I need you to help me brainstorm a number of ideas that are similar to <insert examples like the above - e.g. Pasta Shake-up / Adventurous Ales / Badminton Battles>. Present these in a bullet point list and give me your best five, prioritised by how likely I am to enjoy them and stick to them. Ask me any questions before you begin to understand me and what I might like."

AI-Generated Resolution Examples

Here are some of the examples I got when prompting ChatGPT with the examples I'd been given:

• Movie Mix-Up: Try a new film from a different genre/era each month, hosting friends or family.

• Cuisine Explorer: Cook a dish from a different country every month to experience new flavors.

• Artistic Adventures: Try different art forms, from pottery to watercolor painting.

  
  

Let’s Refresh Our Resolutions

Hopefully, you're encouraged to add a splash of joy into your resolutions for the year ahead. And if you're stuck, perhaps you're ready to give generative AI a spin to give you a bit of inspiration. Whether you're inspecting some new pale ales or battling it out in badminton, let’s make this the year you’ll actually stick to your resolutions, all with a little joy and help from AI!

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