Opinion Locking in on the September reset

Tomorrow, he was longing for tomorrow, whereas everything in himself should make him reject it.” That which pulls human beings from one day to the next in a universe marked by absurdity is, as Albert Camus put it in The Myth of Sisyphus, meaning. Or, simply, human beings need something to look forward to. A recent social media trend would likely gain Camus’s approval then: The “great lock in” or the “September reset” is aimed at taking stock and making changes to improve the quality of one’s life. Google Trends says search for the term has surged by 1367 per cent this month. As the year rolls towards its end, the trend is aimed at taking stock of where one stands and making changes. The idea is to reboot one’s life in pursuit of goals, new and old.

The pursuit is not entirely new. That purpose and structure drive contentment has been known to many. The earliest iteration of New Year’s resolutions today can be traced back to the ancient Babylonians some 4,000 years ago. They made promises to their gods to return all borrowed items and pay off their debts. Romans too, prayed to the two-faced god Janus (after whom January is named), whom they believed could look simultaneously into the previous year and the coming one, and made promises of good behaviour. An entry from January 2, 1671, in writer Anne Halkett’s diary, reads: “I will not offend any more”. The page is titled “Resolutions”.

Advertisement

In a world engulfed by chaos, working on the self, striving for change, are the contemporary equivalents of rolling up the Sisyphean boulder in the pursuit of control. So work on that work-out plan, go out and make more friends, have your cake and plan to eat it too. Remember, what makes for a happy life is not how things fall in place but how one strives to ensure that they do.