In a culture that welcomes each new year with the hope of re-emerging as a better person by the next, the first few months are a time to determine what is “in” and what is “out.”
What will be brought into the new year and, thus, people’s new lives? What will be left to decay in yesteryear? Overwhelmingly, 2024 seems to be the year of balance and self-care for Northeastern students.
Across social media platforms, thousands have been sharing their thoughts on what is “in” and what is “out” for 2024. It has become a growing trend to not only make an “in and out” list but to create a vision board for 2024 made from these “ins.” Ask many Northeastern students, and they will be able to chat about these lists and what is on theirs.
“My ‘in’ would be low screen time,” said Aya Alameddine, a third-year business administration and psychology combined major.
“I already made a list with my friends,” she said. “‘Out’ is saying ‘yes’ to things I don’t want to do.”
These types of “ins” and “outs” reflect a strive toward a balanced life. Students are prioritizing a healthy work-play dynamic while ensuring their downtime is fulfilling.
“My 2024 ‘out’ is talking about co-op and school,” said Ayla Iftikhar, a first-year business administration major.
Iftikhar’s response caused her friend, sitting across their table, to perk up behind a stack of books and weigh in.
“Yeah, talking about school, period,” said Melanie Danielson, a first-year communication studies and sociology combined major.
Another way students are embracing self-care is by avoiding the pitfalls of consumerism, opting to only partake in trends they enjoy while ditching the ones that lack personal appeal.
“My ‘outs’ have to be Stanley cups, rude gym culture, spending $8 on coffee and filler — you know, overfilling your face,” Danielson said.
While the Stanley cup, expensive coffees and dermal fillers are unlikely to disappear anytime soon, the fact that they made it on a student’s “out list” hints that many Northeastern students are tired of chasing trends.
This disapproval of buying into a trend solely for approval and community helps promote self-care among students mentally and financially, students say.
Self-care-related “ins” were not just related to mental and economic health — physical well-being was also an underlying “in.” Iftikhar and Danielson, for example, are aiming to find ways to beat the bitter chill of winter in Boston.
“I think my ‘ins’ are sleeping early and wearing two pairs of pants in winter,” Iftikhar said.
“Mine are big, thick scarves, headbands and natural nails,” Danielson said.
New Year’s resolutions are often centered around making a radical change, whether it be healthy or not. For Northeastern students, 2024 is not the year of resolutions, but instead the year of being kinder to themselves. They are welcoming positive sleep schedules, lower screen times and bundling up for winter while ditching unwelcoming gym culture, costly trends and academic comparison.
The Northeastern community is stepping away from a culture of toxic weighing up, instead swapping that energy out for authenticity and personal care practices, deeming self-care the ultimate “in” of 2024.
