Listen to Episode 19 of "Coffee with Gringos" here or on iTunes, Spotify, Google Play, Stitcher and Soundcloud.
Download the Episode 19 Transcript here!
TRANSCRIPT
Paige: You're listening to Coffee with Gringos. I'm Paige Sutherland.
Mariah: And I'm Mariah Wika. Welcome back to podcast. This week, we are chatting about New Years resolutions. Those are the goals that we set, and we try really hard to keep every year. Or maybe we don't try so hard to keep them. We'll talk about that today. Remember, as you listen to the episode today, if you get lost, the transcript and vocabulary guide are on our website to help you out.
Paige: Alright, so to talk about the common New Years resolutions, I think a lot of them have to do with health, right? Exercise more. Eat better.
Mariah: Right. Personal development, maybe learning a hobby, learning a skill. Or, I think, related to what you're saying, not necessarily eating better or exercising more, but eliminating a bad habit. I think resolutions generally fall into those three camps.
Paige: Yeah, eating less candy, not smoking, drinking less... all of those kind of vices I guess that we have. So, are you a New Years resolution setter?
Mariah: I think there are two types of people, maybe there are three types of people... people who are obsessed with New Years resolutions and very committed to them, people who set them and just absolutely fail, and people who really could care less.
Paige: What camp do you fall into?
Mariah: Honestly, I'm somewhere between two and three. I occasionally set them, and then I disastrously fail. Or I just don't do it at all because I don't want to fail. I don't know. How about you? Which group do you fall into?
Paige: I usually set a New Years resolution, but I've never been successful.
Mariah: Ever?!
Paige: No... the biggest one that I set probably every year I think I'm gonna try again this year, and maybe it will finally stick... but it's always, you know, a big character flaw of mine is waking up early. I hate the mornings. If I have to wake up for something, I can physically do it. If it's something, where you know, oh you should wake up early to do work or go to the gym or go for a run... I will snooze the heck out of it. I'll snooze for five minutes for two hours and get up two hours later.
Mariah: Me too... Me too.
Paige: So, it's probably one of my worst pet peeves of mine. So, every year, I'm like, "Nope, that's it, you're gonna wake up at 6:30 every morning, regardless of when you have to wake up." And probably the first week or two, I'm like very committed. And then I let a week slip... and then another week, and then I'm back to snoozing.
Mariah: Just back to the same old, sleeping in. Yeah, I hear you, I hear you.
Paige: What are your biggest New Years resolutions?
Mariah: Oh, that's a good question. One resolution that I have for the coming year is to be more on time. So, I am not the most punctual person in the world. I've arrived to Coffee with Gringos studios late many times... every time, except today. A round of applause!
Paige: I was very shocked when I heard the doorbell ring, and it was exactly on time... I was like this can't be Mariah, this must be someone else.
Mariah: Right, I'm a woman whose full of surprises, and being on time is one of them. So, I think that's a good goal. I would also like to wake up earlier, but frankly, I think that's pretty unrealistic for me, and so I'm going to set a goal that's maybe more achievable... which is showing up on time like 75% of the time.
Paige: I think that is the biggest flaw of New Year's resolutions is they are so unreachable.
Mariah: Right, they're lofty.
Paige: I'm gonna work out everyday for the next year! When you're a person who works out maybe once a month. That's unattainable for you. You're not going to go from once a month to everyday... so it's kind of, I think the pitfall is you set these unattainable resolutions, where you aren't gonna be successful.
Mariah: Right. I was reading an article the other day that was talking about New Year's resolutions. And it was actually focused on the UK, so it had surveyed a group of folks there, and it said that resolutions are impossible to achieve because they aren't specific, and they aren't realistic. And so, it was saying, you know... maybe your resolution is, "I want to save money." Well, that's really general and broad, but maybe something more achievable is to say, you know, "I want to save 50.000 pesos a month." Right? And all of a sudden, you have a measurable goal. And I think that's good advice.
Paige: Have you ever gone to the gym the week after New Years?
Mariah: Oh yeah. It's packed.
Paige: It's packed. You can tell everyone's New Year's resolution is to work out more, to exercise, I mean, I remember I would go to the gym, and I couldn't get a treadmill, I couldn't get a bike... and then, maybe two weeks in, it's like ghost town. No one's there anymore. It's like everyone already broke their New Year's resolution and is like, "Eh, that worked out for a good five straight days. I'm good for the year."
Mariah: Right, exactly, exactly. That's typical. Yeah. I think that the thing with New Year's resolutions is that a lot of times, these are big changes we're talking about. These lofty goals that we said people make... eating well or exercising routinely or drinking less alcohol or quitting a smoking habit. Those are not necessarily things that happen overnight. And I think that it's good that people see the turning of the year as an opportunity to make a change in their life. That's a positive thing, but at the same time, research shows, and I think we know as humans that changes take time, and you know, the change from December to January doesn't necessarily indicate that you're going to be able to flip a switch and become a triathlete that eats salad every single day.
Paige: No! And I think for our listeners who are trying to learn English, I think that is a good thing to keep in mind... set goals for yourself that are attainable. Maybe I wanna improve my English so that I'm speaking more in the past tense or that I'm, you know, able to strike up conversation more comfortably. Like, set reasonable goals instead of being like, "I wanna be fluent in 2019!" That's a very hard goal to have, so you wanna, like Mariah said, have some tangible goals.
Mariah: Right. That's a great point, Paige. I think that, like this article I was telling you about said: Is it attainable? Is it realistic? And is it measurable? So, instead of saying, "I wanna be fluent," saying, "Okay, I wanna practice 10 minutes a day in any way that I possibly can, whether that's listening to music or watching part of a series or listening to Coffee with Gringos!
Paige: Great goal to have for 2019.
Mariah: Right, but that's an attainable goal, maybe a realistic goal, like Paige said, is saying: "I'm going to master the past tense this year!" or "I'm going to be conversational this year!" But a goal like fluency is a lofty goal that might take you years to achieve.
Paige: And might disappoint you... because you're aiming for something that most people can't achieve. It's too high of a task to set for one year.
Mariah: Right, so it's a great goal to set, and we hope that learning English is part of your New Year's resolution, but if it is, make sure that you're setting it in a way where you can be successful and where you can actually see change instead of, you know, hitting the books, studying three hours a day for the first two weeks of the New Year, and then completely quitting by week three.
Paige: So, now that it's out there, it's recorded... Mariah is gonna work on being on time, I'm gonna work on getting up early...
Mariah: And our listeners are going to be devoted Coffee with Gringos fans.
Paige: Settled. 2019. Best year yet.
Mariah: Here we come. We're ready for ya. Thanks so much for listening, and we'll talk to you soon.
KEY VOCABULARY, PHRASES, AND SLANG
Goal (noun) - an objective
Example: This week, we are chatting about New Year’s resolutions. Those are the goals that we set, and we try really hard to keep every year.
To set goals (phrase) - to decide on and try to achieve your goals
Example: This year, Paige set the goal to wake up earlier.
Achieve (verb) - to obtain, to accomplish
Example: Sometimes it’s difficult to achieve your goals when they’re too unrealistic.
Resolution (noun) - an objective or goal
Example: It’s common to make New Year’s resolutions every year.
To keep a goal/resolution (phrase) - to be committed to your objective
Example: Every year, we try hard to keep our New Year’s resolutions.
Fall into camps (idiom) - are separated into groups
Example: Usually New Year’s resolutions fall into three camps: health, personal development, and eliminating a bad habit.
Vices (noun) - wrong or bad habits
Example: Some people try to eliminate their vices for New Year's - smoking and drinking for example.
Committed (adjective) - dedicated
Example: Some people are very committed to keeping their New Year’s resolutions.
Skill (noun) - an ability
Example: I want to learn a new skill for New Year’s… maybe I’ll learn to play the piano!
Fail (verb) - to not succeed, to not complete your objective
Example: Sometimes I set New Year’s Resolutions, but unfortunately, I almost always fail!
Flaw (noun) - an imperfection or weakness
Example: One of Paige’s biggest character flaws is that she’s not good at waking up early.
Hit snooze (slang) - to silence your alarm clock when it sounds
Example: I hate mornings! Sometimes I hit snooze five times.
Sleep in (phrasal verb) - to sleep late, especially to sleep later than you planned
Example: I love sleeping in, so it’s hard for me to wake up early.
Pet peeve (slang) - something that you find very annoying or frustrating
Example: Her pet peeve is when people arrive late.
On time (phrase) - punctual
Example: I almost never arrive on time.
Achievable (adjective) - able to be reached/obtained successfully
Example: It’s very important to set goals that are achievable.
Lofty (adjective) - unrealistic
Example: Exercising every single day is a lofty goal.
Pitfall (noun) - danger or difficulty
Example: One of the pitfalls of setting resolutions is that people often choose goals that are completely unattainable!
Work out (phrasal verb) - to exercise
Example: One of the most common New Year’s resolutions is to work out more.
Flip a switch (idiom) - make a very sudden change
Example: Research shows that it’s very difficult to flip a switch and change a habit.
Attainable (adjective) - possible to obtain or achieve
Example: If you’re an English language learner, set an attainable goal, and try to practice for just ten minutes every day!
Hit the books (idiom) - study very, very intensely
Example: You don’t need to hit the books for three hours a day to improve your English, but it is important to practice a little every day!
Download the Episode 19 Transcript here!