Fun on Friday: Have You Made Your Pet’s New Year Resolution?

It’s time to bid a fond farewell to 2020. Good riddance and don’t let the door hit you in the butt on the way out!

Of course, the New Year also means it’s time for — resolutions.

Confession: I’ve never been good at resolutions. In fact, I refuse to make them. Why set yourself up for failure? But get this; now I’m not only supposed to make resolutions for myself. I have to make them for my pets!

Ummm – no.

The city of Jacksonville, Florida’s, Animal Care and Protective Services offered a list of resolutions you can make for your pet. They sound a lot like the resolutions I’m supposed to make for myself. They include regular exercise, a healthy diet, regular trips to the vet (for your pet, not for you) and learning new skills.

You will note that most of these resolutions are for dogs. No self-respecting cat is going to bow to your resolution wishes. And quite frankly, I’m with the cat on this.

In fact, I didn’t make a single resolution last year and I can confirm that I didn’t break any either. After all, you can’t break a resolution you don’t make.

Just consider that your last bit of wisdom for 2020.

You’re welcome.

Look. Let’s get down to the nitty-gritty. If you make a resolution, you aren’t going to keep it. I’m not questioning your intentions … just your willpower. I don’t mean any offense. I’m just stating the facts — playing the odds if you will.

Here’s the sad truth. The average New Years’ resolution is broken by January 12. This is based on research conducted by Strava, a social media network for athletes. According to a New York Post story, the company analyzed more than 31.5 million online global activities to come up with that date. I don’t really get how they did that, but it sounds sciency, so we’ll go with it.

Then there is this: according to a study conducted by the University of Scranton, just 8% of people achieve their New Year’s goals. That means more than 80% fail.

So, why set yourself up for failure? Or your pet, for that matter. Join me in my “no resolutions” resolution and you’ll be sure to succeed.

Basically, you’re just avoiding the trap of unrealistic expectations. You see, most people set the bar too high. They say something like, “I’m never going to eat donuts again.” Or, “I’m going to work out every single day!”

That’s not going to happen.

You know it.

I know it.

The clerk at Dunkin knows it.

And your pet knows it. She doesn’t care, of course. But she knows it.

But in all seriousness, I do think there’s some value in using the New Year holiday to reflect, look ahead, and maybe set some goals. Not for your pet, but for your own life.

Sometimes we need a place to reset and the New Year holiday provides that opportunity.

Speaking of — maybe you’ve wanted to get your financial house in order. I’m hopeful that 2021 will be better than the trainwreck that was 2020, but economically, I don’t think it will. There is too much government spending, too much debt and too much money printing.

You need to get prepared. One way is to diversify your savings with gold and silver.

Now is a good time to start. Not because it’s a new year, but because it’s now! If you never take that first step, you’ll never get to the second one. SchiffGold’s precious metals specialists can help you get started investing in gold and silver. Give them a call at 1-888-GOLD-160. Don’t resolve to do it. Just do it.

Fun on Friday is a weekly SchiffGold feature. We dig up some of the off-the-wall and off-beat stories relating to precious metals and share them with you – with tongue firmly planted in cheek. Click here to read other posts in this series.