A New Year Without Resolutions: Defining Your Non-Negotiables

“What are your non-negotiables?”

This is one of my favorite questions to ask clients when we start talking about health, healing and self-prioritization. Not because I want to add more to their plate—but because I want them to reconnect with what they truly need to feel their best.

As the New Year approaches, many of us feel pressure to create New Year’s Resolutions. Eat better. Exercise more. Lose weight. Be more productive. While these goals may be well-intentioned, they often don’t stick—and it’s not because we lack discipline or motivation.

It’s because of the mindset behind them.

Why Resolutions Often Fail

A resolution usually comes from a place of fixing something. It implies that something is wrong with us—that we need to be better, stricter, more disciplined.

That mindset can feel disempowering. It creates an all-or-nothing mentality, where one “misstep” leads to guilt, shame and eventually giving up altogether. When life inevitably gets busy or messy, resolutions are often the first thing to go.

Shifting From Resolutions to Intentions

Intentions—and especially non-negotiables—come from a very different place.

Instead of asking: “What do I need to change about myself?”

Ask yourself: “What do I need in order to feel supported, grounded and well?”

This shift moves us from judgment to self-trust. From restriction to nourishment. From pressure to presence.

Non-negotiables are acts of self-respect. They’re the things you commit to because they help you feel like you. They create a foundation that allows everything else in your life to feel more manageable.

When we focus on what we can do to care for ourselves, we naturally begin to crowd out habits, patterns and commitments that no longer serve us—without force or punishment.

Intentions Are About How You Want to Feel

Intentions are the meaning behind your actions. They guide your choices without boxing you in.

They also allow for flexibility. Your non-negotiables don’t have to look the same all year—or even all month. As you evolve and grow, your needs may change and that’s not failure—that’s wisdom.

My New Year’s Non-Negotiables

Instead of resolutions, these are the practices that I’m committing to this year because they help me feel grounded, nourished and connected:

1. Take breaks during my day to get outside and walk in nature.

   
   

2. Drink enough water each day.

   
   

3. Read from a book not related to nutrition before bed.

   
   

4. Don’t reach for my phone first thing in the morning.

   
   

5. Find stillness every day for at least 5–10 minutes—meditation, Epsom salt baths, sauna, or quiet breathing.

   
   

6. Make time for play— pickleball, friends, travel, adventures, surfing, yoga.

   
   

   

   

7. Plan out my meals– so I can nourish my body with foods that make me feel good.  

   
   

8. Choose connections that feel reciprocal and grounded.

   
   

9. Always listen to my gut—saying yes to what feels good and not negotiating with myself when something feels bad.

   
   

None of these are about perfection. They’re about presence. They’re about choosing myself in small, consistent ways.

An Invitation for the New Year

As you step into this New Year, I invite you to pause before writing a list of things you think you should do.

Instead, ask yourself:

• What helps me feel calm and grounded?

• What supports my energy?

• What do I need more of to feel like myself again?

Let your answers guide your intentions.

Because when you build your year around non-negotiables rooted in care and self-trust, you’re not trying to become someone new—you’re creating space to be more fully you.