New Year’s resolutions are made with the hopes of either making oneself better or to cut out bad habits from the previous year.
According to the Farmer’s Almanac, the tradition of making resolutions for the new year dates back as far as 2000 B.C. when the ancient Babylonians celebrated the New Year during a 12-day festival called Akitu. They would start their New Year by planting crops for the king and making promises to pay their debts.
Today, resolutions are still made but they have evolved in nature. The principle still revolves around making a promise to improve whether it is financial improvements or health.
According to a survey by Ipsos, from a sample of 2,502 Canadians aged 18 plus almost half [42 per cent] of Canadians have changed their initial resolution in response to the rise in cost of living.
“As many as 30 per cent say they now plan to minimize spending and 17 per cent plan to create financial goals and/or a budget in 2024,” the survey says.
The report says Canadians have already started becoming more financially aware because of the economy and 58 per cent have already consulted a financial advisor to improve their financial health.
Statistics Canada says along with becoming more financially independent resolutions have also been made to improve health, eat better, and spend more time with family.