New year brings fresh opportunities for growth and reflection

"Be at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors and let every new year find you a better man."

—Benjamin Franklin

Say goodbye to 2025 and hello to 2026. OK, I am about two weeks late, but it really is the thought that counts. By now most New Year's resolutions have been abandoned. However, there is no law stating we cannot try again.

Too many people try once, and when it doesn't work out, they never try again. Those people who make it in this world try many times before they are successful. In fact, they try one more time, and then they finally get it.

I like to divide this up into four categories. These are by no means the only categories you may want to hit this year, but you start thinking about what you want to achieve in the coming year. The first one is a major change. What is the one overall major change we want to see in our lives? Now before we get scared off by the word major, we can work on it throughout the year. Think about what you want to see and the small changes you can make to ensure success — like if you want to walk a mile a day, you might just walk to the mailbox a few days, then go farther. It could take a week or a month to get that first mile in.

Family is one of the most important things in life. My dad always says if you can’t count on family, who can you count on? Some of us don’t have our family around us. We moved, or they moved away. We can still call or text each other. I know I have to get better at this myself. We might decide that if they don’t have to call me first, I can take the first step. Many people think by working long hours and making a lot of money they are taking care of their family, but their families would rather have them than the money.

Zig Ziggler once said, “Money isn't everything, but it is reasonably close to oxygen.” I know that many of the business owners have an idea of how much money they are planning to make this year. We all should have the same idea. A budget is important to have so we know where our money is going.

It can seem like we are handcuffed when we stick to a budget, but when we don't have a budget, we wonder where our money has gone. Also, think about how much you want to donate and where you want it to go. If you really think about it, when you donate money, you are saying this cause is important.

The final category is faith. I know not all my readers are religious, so feel free to substitute values or morals. However, for me, my faith plays an important role in my life. It helps keep me grounded through the tough times. It also helps me to love people more. You know those people who get on our nerves? I remind myself Christ died for them as well. There is always room for improvement, and I hope we can all improve ourselves this year.

Kyle Snyder can be emailed at kylesnyder86@yahoo.com.