Here’s a great New Year’s Resolution idea from Melissa Kirsch, the deputy editor of Culture and Lifestyle at The New York Times and writer of its Saturday newsletter.

My resolutions are typically of this variety: self-criticism disguised as self-improvement. Get in shape; stop your profligate spending; be nicer; work harder. If your resolution seems architected by someone who doesn’t like you, there’s still time to reconsider it.

My resolution this year is to, whenever possible, shop in person instead of online. I like this resolution because it lines up with other objectives I have concerning my finances, community, sustainability, simplicity.

And it’s not totally about me, so it feels a little less dreary and narcissistic than typical resolution fare. It’s also less ambitious, which I hope means that I’m less likely to abandon it.

A friend recently reminded me that anything worth doing is worth doing poorly. I’ve built in the “whenever possible” clause with this in mind. I’m going to do my best to buy things in brick-and-mortar shops.

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