The New Year seems inseparable from resolutions. Many of us want to change something in our lives. Often, we do it to feel better individually: exercises, healthy eating, meditation, etc. What if we started the year 2024 with a collective approach to this ritual at the start of the year? I propose a great quiet resolution!
In the 1960s, the Quiet Revolution brought about a modernization of the State. A quiet resolution in 2024 could commit us to creating a society that generates well-being. Impossible, do you think? What if we achieved this together thanks to the strategies demonstrated by behavioral science?
I was inspired by recently reading the column “ The tired majority”, written by Claude Pinard for The Press. The president and general director of Centraide of Greater Montreal suggests that we reconcile ourselves with time, which would be the source of a beautiful, quiet resolution: “By giving ourselves time to listen, to think, to cultivate courtesy, for us inform in depth, we become conscious and responsible actors in our society,” he writes.
We have three pillars to succeed in our quiet resolution: the effect of new beginnings, social support and help offered to others. The concept of new beginnings states that certain moments, such as the start of a new week, month, or year (resolution), create a psychological separation between our past behaviors and our future aspirations, and this can motivate us to set new goals for ourselves.
These opportune moments allow us to move away from certain past behaviors and feel more determined to pursue positive changes. Much like our “famous” New Year’s resolutions, these time markers create a feeling of fresh beginnings, which makes individuals more receptive to adopting new habits or behaviors.
From “I-me-me” to “we”
The second pillar refers to social support and the importance of creating a supportive social environment in order to achieve our personal goals. We can also create this supportive environment to contribute to a collective goal. This requires a shift from “I-me” to “we”. Mr. Pinard suggests courtesy, listening and helping others: these are opportunities to engage in a collective resolution and thus create collective social support.
The third pillar is offering our help to other people. Anyone who has ever helped those in need by giving their time or in any other way has certainly felt a gratifying sense of well-being afterwards. Research by leading behavioral scientists shows that charitable giving has a positive effect on happiness. Additionally, volunteering is one of the most useful activities we can engage in.
Finally, it is shown that happiness is even greater when it is created with someone else than when it is experienced alone. So, take a friend with you and offer others support to make a difference in society!
We have three choices of resolutions for 2024: not making any and favoring the status quo, imagining one for yourself or participating in the big quiet resolution. The book What is a happy life? of Dr Robert Waldinger and Marc Schulz, based on one of the most important scientific research on happiness, teach us that the happiest people are those who develop a support network and contribute to it to enrich it.
Let’s be these happy people, and let’s participate together in the actualization of the ritual of resolutions by initiating the quiet resolution! And thank you to Mr. Pinard, for allowing the evocation of this inspiration. Happy quiet 2024 resolution to everyone!