This past year was a big one for me. I was coming up on my one-year work anniversary, I was cripplingly single, and I made a concerted effort to have a better grasp on who I was and who I wanted to be. Now that the year is over, I’m getting close to my two-year mark at work, I’m still cripplingly single, but I’ve got a much stronger handle on who I am and where I think I’m going in life.

Can I attribute any of this to my extensive list of New Year’s Resolutions?

No.

Despite the fact that I listed out my resolutions, not many came to fruition. Some were much bigger and more meaningful than others, but that didn’t necessarily mean that I was dedicated toward keeping them. Or remembering them, despite the fact that I had them all stored in my phone.

So let’s review the resolutions I set in 2015 and determine how successful I was over the past 12 months.

Please note that we’ll be measuring the success of each resolution on the Kate Tully Success Meter.

Resolution No.1: No moving to or staying in cities for other people.

My lease runs up each September, meaning each spring, I have to evaluate whether I want to stay in Boston or move to a different city. At the beginning of 2014, I had my heart set on moving back to Nashville. I started stockpiling money and preparing my roommate for seeking other housemates. But that summer, I grew much closer to my coworkers and former coworkers. I started to feel wildly independent for the first time, and I had no intention of giving that up.

So I stayed, but I can’t wholeheartedly say it was entirely because of myself. I had friends (and a boy, of course) telling me to stay, so I did. But I wanted 2015 to be my year of objective and independent thinking, so I resolved to only move (or stay) for myself.

Verdict: Success. There was a brief stint when I wanted to move home, and another when I wanted to move to California or New York. But I ultimately didn’t.

Resolution No.2: Bring my lunch to work

OK, let’s get real here – it’s very difficult to remember to bring your lunch to work every day. Think of all the extra steps this requires (because I sure didn’t when I made this resolution): 1) waking up earlier. 2) buying groceries like, frequently. 3) making meals in advance to pack for lunch. 4) having the ability to put together a healthy and well-balanced lunch (not a granola bar, a handful of ritz, some dry pasta and goldfish, I guess?).

Verdict: Wildly unsuccessful. I’d say out of 52 weeks, I brought my lunch for about 4 of them.

Resolution No.3: Join a gym

I went back and reread this one very carefully, because I was fully prepared to accept defeat here. Did I join a gym? I sure as shit did. In January. Proudly.

Did I go to the gym?

…

I did go to the gym. I can count on my fingers the number of times I went, but the point is – I JOINED it. As my resolution called for.

I considered making “GO to the gym” a resolution for 2016, but I don’t think it’s fair to set myself up for failure.

Verdict: 100% success, baby!

Side note: Please understand that I have been a member of the gym for almost a year now. I have yet to cancel my membership for two main reasons: 1) If I cancel, I’ve accepted defeat, something I do NOT enjoy doing. Therefore, I live with the knowledge that if I ever wanted to go – you know, for stress relief or health or something (why do people go there) – I totally could. But 2) If I want to cancel, I have to do it over the phone. And I hate talking to people on the phone.

Resolution No.4: Take better care of skin

I did pretty good with this one! I started taking Proactiv in January. There was about a two-month stretch where I stopped using it, but then I started again.

Verdict: I’m rating this one a moderate success. I still use Proactiv, but I’m not doing all that other stuff Cosmo recommends like “watching your diet” or “running” or something. I don’t know, I don’t pay much attention to the health articles. Ask me who my spirit Backstreet Boy from the “Everybody (Backstreet’s Back)” music video is, though.

Resolution No.5: Go on dates

Oh, dear.

Let me preface by saying that I am terrible at dating. Like, really bad. Like, clumsy-leading-lady-in-a-romantic-comedy-without-being-endearing-or-funny bad. If you need an example, please refer to “Burn the Books,” alternatively titled, “Why I no longer text boys without an adult present.”

I wanted to step outside of my comfort zone and actually date this year, which I hadn’t really done in years prior.

Where did I turn?

It’s 2015 and I’m single. I turned to Tinder.

At first, I was highly opposed to dating men on Tinder. But after going on a much more refined Hinge date and canceling on one young gentleman either named Geoff or Jeff, I decided to take the plunge with a young boy whom I’ve appropriately nicknamed “Sharktooth.”

Expect this story soon.

Bottom line, I dated. I hated every second of it, and despite the fact that I deleted all my dating apps and swore to never date another stranger again, I learned a lot about my preferences, my standards, and my own happiness.

Verdict: Slight success. Successful in that I did date, but I didn’t go on many before I threw in the towel.

2016 Resolutions

What have I learned from 2015? I’ve learned a great deal about who I want to be as a professional, I’ve learned that living with your best friends can have a drastic impact on your happiness, and I’ve learned that short hair just frames my face far better than long hair did.

I also learned that seven resolutions are far too many for me to keep track of. (Yes, there were two more that I didn’t include, but I stuck to swimmingly.) For 2016, I’ve decided to stick to three main ones, as documented below:

1. Be a badass at work.

I haven’t quite discovered exactly what it is that I’d like to be doing, but I feel like I’m getting pretty damn close – and this will be the year that I figure it all out. Once I do, shit’s gonna get pretty real around the office.*

*Please note I had to mix up my language because I felt like I was writing an Elle horoscope.

2. Travel more.

Specifically, travel internationally this year. I went to Italy in college, but I want to go back. Or go to New Zealand. Or hell, I’ll take Canada.

3. Start blogging again.

This of course begins in a few days with the harrowing tale of “Sharktooth.” Stay tuned.