Making your New Year's resolutions work!

Mauluda, Olga, Oybek, Ivilina, & Asliya, all from Uzbekistan, are exploring NYC
& studying at NYLC for two weeks. Check out their New Year's resolutions below. 

Well, it's the first full week of 2014. We hope you all enjoyed your New Year's celebrations and are ready to get back into your regular routines. This is actually a good time to think of the resolutions that you've made for the new year and think of ways to implement them (use; put them into practice).

Experts say you have to turn resolutions into specific activities and add them to your schedules in order to make them work and cause the changes that you want to take effect. For example, if you want to improve your English, you might add one hour every day after your classes at NYLC to read one short news article, underline new vocabulary, add them to your notebook, and write sentences. Similarly, you might resolve (decide) to read one grammar exercise every night before going to bed. Doing these or something similar everyday will make your resolution a habit and put you on the road to making positive changes in your life.

Here are some resolutions from students, teachers, and staff. If we didn't get to ask you, please add yours in the comment section below, on NYLC's page on Facebook, or @NYLangCenter on Twitter with the tag #ilovenylc, and tell us what specific activity you are incorporating into your routine to make your resolutions a reality. Best of luck on your resolutions, and have a wonderful 2014!

How would you finish this sentence:

2014 is the year I will ...

Adriana from Venezuela, Glenn from
Switzerland, & Dilek from Turkey
share their resolutions for 2014.

• Dilek, in our advanced reading & writing class, will get into college.
• Adriana, also in our advanced reading & writing class, will get an awesome job.
• Glenn, also in our advanced reading & writing class, will get some singing lessons.
• Chayanee (Book), also in our advanced reading & writing class, will improve his English speaking skills.
• Wijittra (Son), also in our advanced reading & writing class, will improve his listening skills.
• Roberto III, in our International Student Office, will be a better person.
• Iris, in our pre-TOEFL class, will improve her English and take the TOEFL.
• Yedarm, also in our pre-TOEFL class, will get into college.
• Gokay, also in our pre-TOEFL class, will get a good job.
• Yin, also in our pre-TOEFL class, will improve her English.
• Yurie, also in our pre-TOEFL class, will improve her English, as well.
• Michket, also in our pre-TOEFL class, will get accepted into an MBA program.
• James, one of our teachers, will save the world. :-) (Good luck, James!)
• Robert, the school's Business Manager, will make sure everything is up-to-date.
• Mauluda, in our advanced reading & writing class, will study harder.
• Olga, also in our advanced reading & writing class, will get a good score on the IELTS. 
• Ivilina, also in our advanced reading & writing class, will get into university.
• Asliya, also in our advanced reading & writing class, will learn to be calmer.
• Nathee, also in our advanced reading & writing class, will work harder in improving her English.
• Cassandra, in our International Student Office, will improve in her yoga poses.
• Sanghamitra, also in our International Student Office, will start working out.
• Jim, also in our International Student Office, will exercise twice a week!
• Karina, also in our International Student Office, will visit London.
• Chan, in the manager's office, will be lucky. 
• Neil, also in the manager's office, will try to exercise three times a week.

Best of luck, everyone! 

So what about you? What will change for the better for you in 2014? Do share, and let us know how you're going to make it a reality. All the best!

-- Joe Yu, ESL instructor