"...New Year, New me..."
As the cliché often goes: New year, New me. It’s the age-old tale of the new years’ resolution: an often-self-improvement-related decision that hits its peak in February and dwindles in May. The idea of a fresh start is enticing, so we set idealistic goals that put us up against our old habits. Specifically, the concept of a “resolution” leads us to believe that 1) there is a problem with our current way of life and 2) that the problem will be entirely “resolved” in this coming new year. It’s no wonder we see the diminishing of resolution habits before the year is halfway gone; we set our selves up for a complete “fix.” We take on an all or nothing mentality, drastically deciding that we will solve a problem we see within ourselves without anticipation of obstacles.
This all or nothing mindset, while briefly motivating, leads us down a path of self-destruction. We burn out, we forget our “why,” or we realize that our lofty and idealistic resolution doesn’t fit within our current priorities. In a nutshell, our resolutions often miss the mark on sustainability in our own lives.
"...Our resolutions often miss the mark on sustainability in our own lives."
So, I propose a new outlook: Behold the new tale of New Years’ Evolutions, where we commit to small, sustainable steps toward being better. When we set unrealistic expectations, we become slaves to an ideal that was never meant for us, at least right now. How many New Years have gone by where you set the same resolution? By setting New Years evolutions, we put ourselves on a journey, not a chore list.
Now you may be wondering why a travel designer is giving you self-help advice in the timely month of January. In light of us “evolving” and adding sustainability into goal setting, I propose we evolve the way we approach our sustainable travel efforts like we approach a New Year. One reason I love being involved with Virtuoso is its commitment to balancing luxury travel with sustainability. Some travel related resolutions may be to finally check some destinations off your bucket list. You may easily tick this task off, or you may keep putting off those vacation days until that resolution re-emerges in the next new year.
"...Let's evolutionize this."
So, let’s “evolutionize” this. One value Sterling Journeys stands behind is making the most with where you go. While enjoying luxury experiences, we can embrace the opportunity to do more with leisure. And what better way to become immersive and sustainable travelers than to devote our New Years Evolutions to evolving others? We can pour ourselves into culture, devote our time to building relationships, connections, and even communities. Virtuoso’s dedication to protecting ecosystems, local economies, and cultural spaces has beautifully evolved the travel industry, highlighting the importance of restorative trips that both feed our wanderlust and our capacity for good.
"Sustainability is in everything..."
Sustainability is in everything; our surroundings, our cultures and traditions, and even our personal habits and goals.
As 2023 continues to show us its abundance of new opportunities, let us keep our wandering spirits alive while “evolutionizing” ourselves. We are taking a pledge to resolve the resolution, to commit to doing good within our means, and to embark on a lifelong journey rather than a year-long obligation. No matter your personal evolutions, we are blessed with an abundance of opportunities to explore and expand, why not be the flap of a butterfly’s wing that catalyzes an evolution?
