Wednesday Briefing: Welcome to 2025

Plus, your best New Year's resolutions

View in browser|nytimes.com January 1, 2025 By Natasha Frost and Gaya Gupta Good morning, and happy New Year. We're covering the end of a turbulent 2024 and what to expect in 2025. Plus: You shared the New Year's resolutions that stuck. New Year's Eve celebrations in Paris. Yoan Valat/EPA-EFE, via Shutterstock Welcome to 2025 It's been a year, hasn't it? There was a lot to cover. Donald Trump stormed back to the White House after his felony conviction. The wars in the Middle East and Ukraine raged on. A.I. became an even bigger part of our lives. Evan Gershkovich, a journalist at The Wall Street Journal, was freed after being imprisoned by Russia. Paris offered a stunning backdrop for the Olympic Games. And Charli XCX's "Brat" album swept the internet, becoming the soundtrack of the summer. What will 2025 bring? Elections in Australia, Belarus, Germany and Poland, among other nations. A second Trump administration. (The year is also the first since 1936 to be a square number.) In the first hours of 2025, people gathered to celebrate, as fireworks crackled in cities large and small. See photographs from New Year's events around the world. We hope you're able to take a moment to reflect not only on the big and difficult moments of this year but also on small pockets of joy. We hope you closed out the year on a high note — or, at least, a calm one. And thank you so much for starting your day — and your year — with The New York Times. For a strong start to the year: Adopting even just one of these 10 easy strategies can help your mind feel sharp, alive and well. Listen to an episode of "The Daily" on pieces of good advice. Here are 10 health- and food-related tips our Well reporters have gleaned from their reporting to help you with this year's goals. Your 2025 resolutions may include some version of trying to eat better. Melissa Clark, a food reporter, shared her approach with these three resolutions. One recommendation: Start relishing embarrassment. MORE TOP NEWS Adel Al-Khadher/Reuters Yemen: The U.S. military said that it had carried out strikes on the Houthis, the Iranian-backed group that is targeting commercial ships in the Red Sea. Puerto Rico: A sweeping blackout struck early yesterday morning, cutting power to nearly all of the U.S. island territory. Wall Street: Investors are heading into 2025 in an optimistic mood, expecting more gains for the stock market. Germany: Olaf Scholz, the chancellor, condemned foreign interference in the upcoming election. Ukraine: Russian troops are using electric scooters, motorcycles and ATVs to stealthily swarm positions. Myanmar: The country has become a magnet for warlords, arms dealers, human traffickers, poachers, drug syndicates and generals wanted by international courts. Sudan: "Trophy" videos are unmasking paramilitary commanders and linking them to atrocities committed in the still-raging civil war. SPORTS NEWS Soccer: Wayne Rooney is out as head coach of Plymouth Argyle. Tennis: Gabriela Dabrowski said that she played through a breast cancer diagnosis and treatment during the 2024 season. Broadcasting: Looking back at the top soccer media stories of 2024. Our 2025 predictions Photo illustration by Amy Li for The New York Times Without a crystal ball to rely on, we asked around the newsroom for thoughts and forecasts for the year to come. David Sanger, who covers the White House and foreign policy, said he would be watching for three major indicators of how Trump would handle a world on fire. "The early test may be his approach to a weakened Iran: Strike the nuclear program or strike a deal?" he said. And the second, he continued, "is whether Trump tries to force a deal on Ukraine." "Then there is the biggest question of all," he said. "Does Trump have a strategy to interfere with the Russia-China-Iran-North Korea partnership? That did not exist during his first term. It has the potential to define his second." Our food reporter, Kim Severson, shared some predictions, too: savory coffees, great convenience-store cuisine and sauces on everything. And our Styles desk pulled together its annual list of predictions. Among them: Pandan will take the spotlight, plant-based skin care will have its moment, and tartan will find new relevance. Natalie Grono for The New York Times Your best resolutions With the start of the new year, some of you may be thinking about your 2025 goals. For a little inspiration, we asked readers to share their most successful resolutions and how they kept them. Here's what they said: To fill my life with more joyful activities, see more friends and get creative. I created a WhatsApp group with around 20 female friends, some of whom I hadn't really seen since before Covid. We're in our 40s and called it "Rage against the machine." Since starting this, we've gone walking, camping, raving. I've reconnected with old friends and brought joy back into my life! — Debbie Clarke, Nottingham, England To be more present with myself and the people around me. When I was with friends, my phone stayed in my bag so as to avoid the distraction and so as to actively listen to what they are talking about. I tried to spend some time during the week in nature at the park. And every night before going to bed, I spent a minute or two either writing down what I'm grateful for or doing a mental body scan. — Stephania Xenophontos, Nicosia, Cyprus To take that trip. In early 2024, you asked readers what was the best advice they'd ever received. One lady wrote, "Book the Trip." That advice became my 2024 resolution. I booked a trip to the Great Barrier Reef which had been on my bucket list for ages. Furthermore, I traveled solo. The entire experience was fantastic. My 2025 resolution is to keep traveling and book another trip! — Margaret Anne Breuer, Sarasota, Fla. To write a gratitude letter to someone every day. I kept the resolution by turning it into a simple daily ritual. By the end of the year, I had written 365 letters to friends, family, teachers, mentors and even people I hadn't spoken to in years. What surprised me most was how this resolution didn't just impact the people receiving the letters — it also transformed the way I saw the world. By focusing on gratitude daily, I deepened my relationships, rekindled old ones and learned to find beauty in even the smallest moments of connection. — Joelle Roth, Makati, Philippines To cut out caffeine. It was my sister's New Year's resolution. When she said she'd stop drinking coffee, I thought to myself I should be able to do the same. The sheer competition kept me going. It took weeks of headaches, brain fog and other physical and emotional withdrawal symptoms. Months later, I triumphantly declared myself coffee-free on the family WhatsApp channel — just for my sister to say that she actually never gave up coffee. — Teresa Olbert, Bijilo, Gambia We hope you've enjoyed this newsletter, which is made possible through subscriber support. Subscribe to The New York Times. RECOMMENDATIONS Armando Rafael for The New York Times Cook: This festive roasted salmon with miso cream looks spectacular and takes just 30 minutes to make. Challenge: Want to be more capable and confident in your food choices this year? Sign up for Well's five-day challenge. Recollect: Take our quiz on culture in 2024. Snooze: Here's how poor sleep can affect your mood. Play the Spelling Bee. And here are today's Mini Crossword and Wordle. You can find all our puzzles here. That's it for today's briefing. Thanks for reading. — Natasha and Gaya Reach the team at briefing@nytimes.com. Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance. 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