Every January, millions of us pledge to change our lives with New Year’s resolutions, but by February, most of those promises have fizzled. Why do we keep setting ourselves up for failure?

Forbes Magazine conducted a survey in 2023 that found only 8% of people stick to their resolutions for a month, and just 13% make it to four months. Resolutions may start with good intentions, but they rarely lead to lasting change.

A couple of years ago, I decided to try something different: 30-day challenges. Unlike open-ended resolutions, 30-day challenges are short, specific, and manageable. Anyone can commit to trying something new for a month, right? Some changes stuck, like the plant-based diet I adopted during Meatless May. Others didn’t. But every challenge left me feeling like I’d made progress.

This year, as I thought about what to focus on in the new year, I had an epiphany – one sparked by two stark realities. First, Hurricane Helena’s devastating impact on my home region in Western North Carolina this past October was a wake-up call. Second, the increasingly unpredictable state of the world has made it clear that none of us can afford to be unprepared.

That epiphany? To dedicate each month in the upcoming year to learning a new survival skill. By the end of the year, I’ll be better equipped to face whatever challenges the world might throw my way. I’m calling it “Survive 2025.” Catchy, right?

Now, before you imagine me as some rugged, grizzled survivalist, let me set the record straight: I’m the guy who’d probably get lost in a big city park. Once, on a camping trip, I struggled to assemble a pop-up tent. A pop-up tent! If there’s a single skill I’ve mastered, it’s finding the nearest exit. But that’s what makes this year’s challenge exciting – I’m starting from square one.

If you’re anything like me – someone who’d probably use a compass as a paperweight – I’d love for you to join me on this journey. Do you want to learn basic survival skills alongside someone who’s about as outdoorsy as an IKEA catalogue? If so, I invite you to subscribe to survive2025.wordpress.com (Coming soon…). Over the year, we’ll tackle skills like starting a fire in any weather, purifying water from natural sources, building shelters, navigating without GPS, and even preparing a bug-out bag.

So, let’s do this together. By the end of the year, I might just graduate from “wouldn’t survive a picnic” to “probably could handle a weekend camping trip.” Baby steps, right?