Love them or loathe them, make them or break them, the tradition of New Year’s is all about new starts and making resolutions.

Emma Connolly asked some local personalities for their thoughts, hopes and plans for 2026…

Caroline O’Donnell,  Levis Corner House, Ballydehob

I don’t make resolutions anymore. The world is so bonkers that just gathering the resolve to keep going, keep smiling and not go hide in a bunker is hard enough, especially in January.

I tried being vegan before for a minute; doing 10,000 miles a week, or maybe it was steps! I never did Dry January though. Hand on my heart even before we ran a pub I thought this was a mad idea.

Another resolution I made was to learn how to stand on my head – that was a 2020 notion, but little did I know everything was going to get upside down anyway.

For 2026, I would like to reduce the screen time – more real life rather than reel life. I’m not one to knock something that’s going to give any one a boost especially going into what can be a tough month for many. But don’t be too hard on yourself, and keep it simple.

Oisín Walsh-Peelo, The Fynches, Clon resident

I think resolutions are tricky things. There’s a lot of pressure at this time of year to formulate some plan for self-improvement. Because of this, I often like to make a plan to do some things I’ve always wanted to do but haven’t yet made the time for.

Oisín Walsh-Peelo, The Fynches, Clon resident

Last year I made a resolution to learn to five-ball juggle! I had mixed success. This year I’m resolving to make more music with our band The Fynches. It’s a more general resolution than a ‘New Year’s’ one though.

I don’t think they’re pointless necessarily, but I do think it’s a really bad time of year to be hard on yourself. Resolutions can be useful if they’re positive but I’m very sceptical of setting goals at a time of year which lends itself to slowing down.

Bantry native Karen Coakley, owner of Kerry Food Tours and food blogger at Kenmare Foodie

I’ve never really made New Year’s resolutions because by March or April, they’ve usually gone out the door. However, 15 years ago, my husband gave up smoking to run the Athens Marathon, and he asked me to join him in February as I was still smoking. I didn’t realise it would be the end of me smoking forever, but here we are! I used to smoke 30 a day, and it’s amazing to think about how far I’ve come.

I also did Dry January in 2024 and loved it so much that I ended up trying to stay alcohol-free for 100 days, and I loved that so much that I kept on going and I’ve now been alcohol-free for two years.

Bantry native Karen Coakley, owner of Kerry Food Tours and food blogger at Kenmare Foodie

It was a game-changer for me – my sleep improved, my low-level anxiety disappeared, and I had more energy and clarity and any brain fog/overwhelm I had disappeared.

It has been my biggest achievement to date and I am loving life without alcohol. Even as a social/weekend drinker it was having an impact on my life that I wasn’t aware of until I removed it. I got to the point where I wasn’t enjoying it, how it made me feel the following day and figured it just wasn’t serving me anymore.

Perhaps one thing I’d like to focus on in 2026 is budgeting and managing my business finances, not a resolution as such, just something I want to work on. In general, I don’t feel like I need to make any more New Year’s resolutions, to be honest. I’m leading a healthy life, I’m active, and I’m just focusing on enjoying it all.

Ray Blackwell, DeBarra’s Folk Club, Clonakilty

While I haven’t traditionally made New Year’s resolutions, I find my perspective changing as I ungracefully stumble towards the latter part of middle age. I no longer view resolutions as fleeting commitments but as aspirations and dreams  and we all deserve to dream and to envision better futures and versions of ourselves – don’t we?

It’s an intrinsic part of the human condition to believe in the potential for change, the power of dreams, and the hope that we can manifest these wishes in our lives.

Ray Blackwell, DeBarra’s Folk Club, Clonakilty

Now, more than ever, as the whole world seems to smoulder and spin out of control, throwing up challenge upon chaos, I recognise that the only true agency we have in life, is over ourselves and our habits. And if we can focus on these and make even the slightest change or redirection, we can create a meaningful impact not only on ourselves and our loved ones but also on our broader
community. 

This year, I hold onto this belief with white knuckled fists.

Retired judge and Clonakilty native Michael Pattwell 

My late mother was a great one for wise sayings. She had dozens and dozens of them and often more than one to fit a particular occasion. When I was asked for my thoughts on New Years’ Resolutions my first thought was one of my Mam’s pearls of wisdom.  She used to say, ‘The road to hell is paved with good intentions.’ Perhaps that is the reason why I never indulged in them; or maybe that is just an excuse for a lack of discipline in me. Who knows?

The nearest I came to making a resolution was about 60 years ago on an occasion of religious zeal (now, unfortunately, not as strong as it once was) I decided I’d give up sugar in my tea for Lent – and I did.  In all those years I have never spoiled my beloved tea with a sweetener of any sort!

Innishannon writer Alice Taylor 

I have a  friend who is into horses big time and for him the next horse is always going to be the ‘big winner’. It is a joy to meet him as, over flowing with enthusiasm, he declares  ‘the dream is on’. We all need dreams! And maybe that is what New Year Resolutions are all about. Dreams, resolutions and plans for the future.  

Every New Year’s Eve as our family gathers to raise a glass my daughter, with pen and paper, rounds us all up and asks each one of us for three things that we plan to have achieved by the following New Year’s Eve. 

Are they resolutions? I am never quite sure but no matter what they are called it focuses us all forward. And the following New Year’s Eve there is great fun and laughter as she reads out our list and does a spot check on progress.  

So I do believe in New Year resolutions. They face us forward and each  year when in the grey days of January I view my sodden garden I am full of New Year resolutions for the year ahead. In my mind I see a beautiful garden over flowing with colour. And then a delicate white snow drop peeping above the dark earth catches my eye and I know that miracles do happen and that the garden will blossom into all of my New Year Resolutions.  

The dream is on!

Bandon native Noella Gabriel, ELEMIS Co-Founder and CEO

I’ve always thought of New Year’s resolutions less as rigid promises and more as gentle intentions. Over the years, I’ve set many – some I’ve kept faithfully others I’ve happily allowed to evolve. This year, my resolution is to simplify: to create more space for rest, restoration, and the small rituals that keep us grounded.

Bandon native Noella Gabriel, ELEMIS Co-Founder and CEO

 In life, consistency matters more than anything – the same goes for skincare. You don’t need a dozen dramatic changes on January 1st; you need a routine that supports you every day. For me, that means making time each evening for a proper double cleanse within your skincare routine.

Resolutions can be useful if they’re kind, realistic, and rooted in self-care rather than pressure. I prefer to think of them as invitations: to care for our skin, our wellbeing, and our inner world with a little more intention.

So yes, I make resolutions, but I make them softly, and I let them support me rather than constrain me.