When the end of the year rolls around, everyone reflects on the choices they’ve made throughout the past twelve months. They think about their accomplishments. They think about their regrets. Most importantly, they pledge to make better decisions the following year.

New Year’s resolutions are an excuse to turn lives around — but there is no reason to wait until the end of the year to make changes.

A new year means nothing. Nothing is going to change as soon as the clock strikes midnight except the number on the calendar. There is no reason to start your diet or give up smoking cigarettes on the first day of the year. Any day of the year is a good day to make healthier decisions.

Even though the new year might feel like a new beginning, you can quit your job and change your life whenever you want. You should not wait until the new year arrives to ask yourself whether you are happy, whether you are living a productive life, whether there are more milestones you should work toward reaching. You should be asking yourself these questions every single day.

You should not wait until the end of the year to break up with your boyfriend, quit your job, or travel across the country. You should make a change as soon as you realize you are unhappy. You should place yourself as a priority the entire year, not only throughout the first three months of the year when self-care becomes trendy.

You should not choose to set New Year’s resolutions because everyone else is doing it. You should not make resolutions to fit in with your friends or impress your colleagues. You should be making resolutions for yourself. You should be bettering yourself for yourself. If you are making resolutions for the wrong reasons, it will be much easier to break those resolutions.

Even though you should be proud of yourself for setting resolutions and sticking to them in the upcoming year, you should not forget to make new resolutions throughout the rest of the year as your situation changes. If you realize your coffee addiction has become a problem, cut down on caffeine that day. If you realize you would regret growing older without seeing Paris in person, book a flight that day. Stop making excuses about how now is not a good time. Stop procrastinating when your happiness is at stake.

The new year might feel like a fresh start, but tomorrow is also a fresh start. Stop waiting to make changes. Stop coming up with excuses to remain at the same dead-end job and date the same toxic partner and live the same unfulfilling life. Be brave enough to make a change, whether it is in the middle of April or August.

Procrastinating is only going to hurt you. The longer you resist change, the harder it will be for you to actually change when you finally decide it is what you need to do.

If you love yourself, if you want what is best for yourself, if you consider yourself a priority, then you should keep your standards high throughout the entire year. You should not settle for a mediocre life. You should constantly push yourself forward because you don’t want to get stuck in a rut. You don’t want to accept less than you deserve.

Remember: You do not need to wait until the end of the year to decide you could be living a more fulfilling life. You do not need an excuse in order to better yourself. Make changes today. Make changes right now.