Better every harvest starts with the kind of resolutions you can actually live out, not just announce on January 1. Every January, the world dusts off the same familiar script. New year, new you. Big promises. Fresh start. Then real life shows up, schedules tighten, energy drops, and those shiny resolutions quietly slide aside.
If that pattern feels familiar, you are not alone. The tradition is ancient, and so is the gap between what we intend and what we actually sustain.
From ancient vows to modern pressure
New Year’s resolutions, in some form, stretch back nearly 4,000 years. The earliest records point to the ancient Babylonians, who held a spring festival connected to planting season. As part of it, they made practical vows such as paying debts and returning borrowed tools.
Those were not dramatic reinventions. They were realistic commitments that kept their households and communities healthy. They were also tied to something farmers still understand today. A good outcome is built by what you do consistently, not just by what you promise once.
Somewhere along the way, we modernized resolutions into a high-pressure personal overhaul. We aim for bold, sweeping change on January 1, usually without a plan that fits real life. We choose goals that sound impressive but ignore the actual rhythms of our days. No surprise that most resolutions fade. The issue is rarely a lack of willpower. It is that the resolution was unrealistic to begin with.
What better every harvest really means
So what do we do instead? I think we go back to what resolutions were meant to be, ongoing, practical commitments that shape who we are over time. For me, the resolution I want this year is simple to say and harder to live, be a better version of myself, consistently.
Not a different person. Not a perfect person. Just better than I was yesterday. That word “better” is intentionally broad, because better shows up differently depending on the season you are in.
Personally, better might mean taking care of my health with more discipline, or protecting time to rest instead of running on empty. It might mean being more present in the moments that matter, not just efficient in the moments that shout the loudest.
Professionally, better means leading with clarity, keeping a long-term view, and staying curious even when I am expected to have answers. It means making decisions that are not just good for this quarter, but good for the culture and the future we are building.
In family life, better might look like patience, listening first instead of reacting fast, or making time for connection when the calendar feels full. This kind of resolution does not expire on January 31. It does not depend on a perfect week or an unbroken streak. It is not a finish line. It is a direction.
Farmers know how progress really works
Farmers understand this instinctively. Nobody believes a single good day makes a good harvest. You cannot set a goal in January and ignore the field until fall. Better every harvest is built through seasonal, persistent work in the details.
You evaluate what worked last year. You admit what did not. Then you make small improvements that compound over time. You adjust for weather, markets, equipment, and the curveballs that always come. That is not failure. That is farming.
And honestly, that is life.
A growth mindset at Sunnybrook
At Sunnybrook, we think about improvement the same way. Our job is to help make each harvest better year after year. We do not chase flashy, unrealistic leaps. Instead, we do the real work of design, testing, listening to farmers, and solving problems one step at a time.
We are not interested in change for the sake of change. We are interested in progress that holds up in the field, when it matters most. Better every harvest is not just a slogan, it is how we choose to operate.
That is why a growth mindset is not a motivational phrase around here. It is an operating system. A growth mindset is the willingness to say, “What can be better,” even when things are already good. It is the habit of asking better questions. It is creative problem solving in the shop, in the office, and in the cab of a combine at 2 a.m. when something is not running right and a solution must be found.
Make this year better, one step at a time
Being better does not mean being harder on ourselves. It means being more honest about what is possible and more committed to steady progress. If you are thinking about resolutions this week, I want to offer a challenge that feels achievable and worth your energy.
Do not pick a goal that demands you become someone else overnight. Pick a commitment to be better and define what “better” means in your world. Maybe it is one percent better in how you fuel your body. Maybe it is better communication with your spouse or kids. Maybe it is better follow-through on the work that matters most. Maybe it is learning from setbacks instead of being derailed by them.
Keep it real. Keep it measurable. Keep it alive past January. Because the best resolutions are not the ones that start big. They are the ones that keep going.
Here is to a new year of steady improvement, grounded ambition, and the kind of progress that shows up in our lives, our families, and our farms. Here is to better every harvest, built one honest step at a time.
Happy New Year, everybody.
