TL;DR
This year, make preserving your family history your resolution that actually sticks. This 12-month action plan breaks the overwhelming task into manageable monthly goals, providing specific milestones, accountability strategies, and a realistic path from January's first interview to December's completed legacy project.
Key Takeaways
- Breaking family history documentation into 12 monthly chunks makes it achievable instead of overwhelming
- Starting in January leverages New Year motivation and gives you a full year to complete the project
- Monthly milestones create momentum and visible progress that keeps you going
- Accountability systems dramatically increase the chance you'll actually finish
- By year's end, you'll have a comprehensive family archive instead of just good intentions
Why This Resolution Is Different (And Why It Matters)
Most New Year's resolutions fail by February. We know this. We've lived it—abandoned gym memberships, forgotten diet plans, dusty journals with exactly three entries.
But documenting family history is different from typical resolutions in crucial ways:
It has a deadline you can't extend: Your family elders aren't getting younger. Every year you delay is stories lost, memories faded, family historians gone. This creates genuine urgency that "lose 10 pounds" never will.
It benefits others, not just you: When you preserve family stories, you're giving your children, nieces, nephews, and future descendants an irreplaceable gift. This external motivation is powerful.
Progress is tangible: Unlike vague goals like "be more organized," you can see and hear your progress—recorded interviews, organized photos, documented stories. This visible achievement reinforces commitment.
It gets easier as you go: Unlike exercise, which stays hard, family history documentation builds momentum. Each conversation gets easier, each interview technique improves, each story connects to others.
The alternative is devastating regret: Ask anyone who lost a parent or grandparent without recording their stories. The regret is profound and permanent. Motivation fueled by preventing future regret is remarkably sustainable.
This isn't a resolution about self-improvement. It's a resolution about legacy, love, and preventing irreversible loss. That's why this one can actually stick.
The 12-Month Overview: What You'll Accomplish
Here's what you'll have accomplished by December 31st if you follow this plan:
- Interviews recorded with 3-5 key family members (parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles)
- Photos organized and digitized—no more boxes of mystery photos
- Family tree documented back at least 3-4 generations
- Key stories written down or recorded in permanent format
- Archive created that's accessible to the whole family
- System established for ongoing story collection
The plan is designed to be achievable even with a busy life—averaging 4-6 hours per month, or about 1-2 hours per week. Some months require more time, others less, balancing across the year.
Month 1 (January): Launch and First Interviews
Monthly Goal: Conduct your first 1-2 family interviews and set up your documentation system.
Why start here: January energy is high, and early success creates momentum for the entire year. Plus, starting with interviews honors the most urgent aspect—capturing stories from living family members.
Week 1: Planning and Setup
- Decide who to interview first (prioritize oldest or most at-risk)
- Set up your recording method (phone, dedicated recorder, or app like MyStoryFlow)
- Create a simple filing system (digital folder structure or physical binders)
- Block calendar time for monthly family history work
- Tell family about your project and get buy-in
Week 2-3: First Interview
- Prepare 10-15 questions (see our questions to ask grandparents guide)
- Schedule the interview—in person if possible
- Conduct the interview (keep it to 45-60 minutes)
- Back up the recording immediately in multiple locations
- Send a thank-you note to the interviewee
Week 4: Process and Reflect
- Listen to the recording and take notes on key stories
- List follow-up questions for next time
- Share one story with the family to build excitement
- Assess what worked and what to adjust
Success metric: One completed, backed-up interview recording
Common challenges:
- Perfectionism preventing you from starting (done is better than perfect)
- Technical issues with recording (test equipment first)
- Interview subject nervousness (start casual, not formal)
Month 2 (February): Gather and Organize Photos
Monthly Goal: Collect family photos from multiple sources and begin organizing them.
Why now: February is short, so tackle a task that's important but can flex to fit available time. Photo organization provides visual material that will enhance future interviews.
Tasks:
- Request photos from family members—siblings, cousins, aunts, uncles
- Gather your own photo collections
- Create an initial organization system (chronological, by family branch, or by generation)
- Scan or photograph 25-50 important photos
- Create a "mystery photos" folder for unidentified people/places
- Start a spreadsheet or document tracking photo information
Success metric: Photos collected from at least 3 sources and organization system established
Pro tip: Use photo organizing sessions as excuses to talk with family. "I found this photo of you in 1985—tell me about it" often triggers wonderful stories.
Month 3 (March): Second Round of Interviews
Monthly Goal: Conduct 2-3 more interviews, applying lessons learned from your first attempt.
Why now: You've had time to reflect on your first interview. Momentum is building. Spring approaching makes scheduling easier.
Tasks:
- Schedule interviews with 2-3 more family members
- Prepare questions based on what you learned
- Use photos from last month to trigger memories
- Record interviews
- Take basic notes during or immediately after each conversation
- Ask each person who else you should interview
Success metric: 2-3 completed interviews, for a total of 3-5 so far
Improvement focus: Make these interviews more conversational and less formal than your first. Let discussions flow naturally while still covering key topics.
Month 4 (April): Start Your Family Tree
Monthly Goal: Create a basic family tree going back at least to great-grandparents.
Why now: You've conducted several interviews and have information to build on. A visual family tree helps identify gaps to fill in coming months.
Tasks:
- Choose a tool (Ancestry, FamilySearch, even just paper or a poster board)
- Input information you already know
- Add information from interviews you've conducted
- Identify gaps and uncertainties
- Reach out to family members to fill in blanks
- Note interesting patterns or discoveries
Success metric: Family tree with at least 3 generations documented (you, parents, grandparents, great-grandparents where known)
Research tips: Start with living relatives before diving into historical records. Free sites like FamilySearch can help fill in documented ancestors.
Month 5 (May): Special Focus—Marriage and Love Stories
Monthly Goal: Document the love stories in your family—how couples met, courtship, proposals, weddings, lasting marriages.
Why now: May/June is wedding season, making it a natural time to focus on romance and partnership. These stories are often the most entertaining and revealing.
Tasks:
- Interview 1-2 couples about their relationship
- Gather wedding photos and memorabilia
- Ask about relationship challenges and how they overcame them
- Record advice for younger generations
- Document cultural or religious wedding traditions
- Note how dating/marriage has changed across generations
Success metric: At least 2 complete love stories documented, with photos
Questions to ask:
- "Where and how did you meet?"
- "What attracted you to each other?"
- "How did you know this was the person you wanted to marry?"
- "What's the secret to a lasting marriage?"
- "What would you do differently?"
Month 6 (June): Midyear Review and Photo Digitization Push
Monthly Goal: Assess progress, adjust plans, and make significant progress on photo digitization.
Why now: Halfway through the year is perfect for recalibrating. Use summer schedule flexibility to tackle the time-consuming digitization project.
Tasks:
- Review what you've accomplished (interviews, family tree, stories)
- Assess what's working and what needs adjustment
- Digitize remaining priority photos (consider using a service if you have hundreds)
- Create a photo book or slideshow of what you've collected
- Share progress with family to maintain engagement
- Plan second-half priorities
Success metric: At least 100 important photos digitized and organized, clear plan for completing the year
Adjustment questions:
- Are you on track to finish?
- What's been harder than expected?
- What's been surprisingly easy?
- Do you need to simplify or can you expand scope?
Month 7 (July): Immigration and Heritage Stories
Monthly Goal: Document your family's immigration story and cultural heritage.
Why now: Summer family gatherings provide opportunities for these conversations. Heritage stories often require more time and multiple conversations.
Tasks:
- Interview first or second-generation immigrants in your family
- Research the historical context of your family's immigration
- Document cultural traditions and their origins
- Record stories in native language if applicable
- Photograph or document cultural artifacts and heirlooms
- Connect with distant relatives in ancestral homeland if possible
Success metric: Comprehensive immigration narrative documented, including reasons for leaving, journey details, and adjustment challenges
Special considerations: These stories often involve trauma or difficulty. Approach with sensitivity and let storytellers control what they share.
Month 8 (August): Career and Work Life Documentation
Monthly Goal: Document the working lives of your family members across generations.
Why now: Work stories reveal values, capabilities, economic context, and social history. They're often undervalued but incredibly revealing.
Tasks:
- Interview family members about their careers and jobs
- Document how work and career opportunities changed across generations
- Gather photos of family members at work
- Record stories about first jobs, career changes, workplace experiences
- Document family businesses if applicable
- Note how economic events affected family employment
Success metric: Work histories documented for key family members across at least 3 generations
Why this matters: Understanding how your grandparents' work ethic or your parents' career sacrifices shaped the family helps younger generations appreciate the foundation they stand on.
Month 9 (September): Childhood and School Memories
Monthly Goal: Capture stories about childhood experiences, schooling, and growing up across different eras.
Why now: Back-to-school season makes this a natural focus. Comparing childhoods across generations fascinates kids.
Tasks:
- Interview family members about their childhood
- Compare experiences across generations (technology, freedom, discipline, entertainment)
- Gather school photos, report cards, yearbooks
- Document neighborhoods and homes where family members grew up
- Record stories about friends, teachers, and formative experiences
- Ask about family rules, chores, and daily routines
Success metric: Childhood stories from at least 3 different generations documented
Engagement idea: Have current children interview grandparents about childhood—the contrast between experiences is educational and entertaining for both.
Month 10 (October): Traditions, Holidays, and Cultural Practices
Monthly Goal: Document family traditions, holiday celebrations, and cultural practices.
Why now: Fall holidays approaching (Thanksgiving, religious holidays) make this timely. These traditions often get lost or diluted without documentation.
Tasks:
- Document how major holidays are celebrated in your family
- Record the origins of family traditions
- Note which traditions have been maintained and which have changed
- Gather recipes for traditional foods
- Record songs, prayers, or rituals
- Document the meaning and importance of cultural practices
Success metric: Key family traditions documented with their history and meaning explained
Preservation tip: Video record holiday celebrations this year with narration explaining the significance of what's happening.
Month 11 (November): Compile and Organize Everything
Monthly Goal: Take all the material you've gathered and organize it into a coherent archive.
Why now: With most content gathered, use November to get organized before the final push. Thanksgiving gatherings allow you to share progress and get feedback.
Tasks:
- Consolidate all recordings, photos, and documents
- Create consistent naming and filing system
- Ensure everything is backed up in multiple locations
- Create an index or table of contents
- Fill in obvious gaps while you still have time
- Share organized material with family for feedback and additions
- Identify what needs to happen in December to finish
Success metric: Comprehensive, organized archive that others can navigate
Organization tips:
- Use consistent file naming (date-person-topic format)
- Create both chronological and thematic organization
- Add metadata to files (who, what, when, where)
- Test that backups are actually working
Month 12 (December): Final Touches and Presentation
Monthly Goal: Complete final elements and create a beautiful presentation of your year's work.
Why now: End the year with a celebration of what you've accomplished. Holiday gatherings provide perfect opportunities to share.
Tasks:
- Conduct any final interviews or fill crucial gaps
- Create a summary or highlights compilation
- Design a presentation format (book, website, video, etc.)
- Write an introduction explaining the project
- Add final photos and documents
- Create copies for family members
- Plan a family gathering to unveil the project
- Establish system for ongoing additions
Success metric: Completed family history archive, presented to family, with plans for continuation
Presentation ideas:
- Holiday gathering where you share highlights
- Printed book for each family unit
- Website or shared drive everyone can access
- Video compilation of interview highlights
- Photo slideshow with narration
Accountability Strategies That Actually Work
The difference between completing this project and abandoning it often comes down to accountability. Here are proven strategies:
Public Commitment
- Announce your resolution to family on January 1st
- Post monthly updates on social media or family chat
- Make it known you're doing this so people ask about progress
Calendar Blocking
- Block specific dates for family history work (treat them like unmovable appointments)
- Set monthly deadlines for each milestone
- Use calendar reminders a week before deadlines
Progress Tracking
- Create a visible chart or checklist of monthly goals
- Keep a journal documenting what you learn each month
- Take photos of yourself working on the project
Accountability Partner
- Partner with a sibling or cousin doing the same project
- Schedule monthly check-ins to share progress
- Create friendly competition
Reward System
- Give yourself small rewards for completing monthly goals
- Plan a special celebration when you finish
- Treat family members who participate
Share as You Go
- Don't wait until December to share—post stories monthly
- Family engagement provides motivation to continue
- Positive feedback reinforces your commitment
Join a Community
- Find online genealogy or family history groups
- Share challenges and get support
- Learn from others' approaches
Adapting the Plan to Your Situation
This 12-month plan is a framework, not a rigid prescription. Adapt it to your circumstances:
If you have limited time:
- Reduce the scope (fewer interviews, simpler organization)
- Spread tasks across more months
- Use services to outsource time-consuming parts (photo scanning, transcription)
If you have more time:
- Add depth to each month's focus area
- Interview more family members
- Include extended family branches
- Create more elaborate final presentation
If key family members live far away:
- Conduct video call interviews instead of in-person
- Use collaborative online tools
- Plan vacation time around interviews
If you're dealing with difficult family dynamics:
- Focus on family members you have good relationships with
- Keep the project neutral and historical rather than emotional
- Interview people separately to avoid conflicts
If cognitive decline is a factor:
- Prioritize interviews with those most at-risk first
- Keep sessions shorter but more frequent
- Focus on long-term memories which persist longer
- Use photos and objects to trigger memories
What to Do When You Fall Behind (Because You Will)
Life happens. You'll likely miss a month or fall behind schedule. Here's how to handle it:
Don't quit: Falling behind doesn't mean failure. Resume where you left off.
Assess realistically: Determine if you need to simplify the plan or just need to catch up.
Combine months: Some tasks can be done together (interviews while organizing photos).
Ask for help: Delegate tasks to interested family members.
Extend the timeline: A 15-month project is infinitely better than an abandoned one.
Focus on priorities: If you must cut something, keep interviews and cut less critical tasks.
Use found time: Holidays and vacations often provide unexpected free time.
The goal isn't perfection—it's completion. A finished-but-imperfect family history archive beats an abandoned perfect plan every time.
Beyond December: Making It a Continuing Practice
The best outcome is that this year-long project becomes an ongoing family practice:
Establish regular interview times: Make quarterly or annual interviews a tradition.
Continue adding to the archive: Birthdays, weddings, and holidays provide new stories.
Involve the next generation: Teach children to interview and document.
Create annual updates: Add a new chapter each year.
Use ongoing tools: Apps like MyStoryFlow make continuous story capture easy.
Expand the family tree: Continue researching and adding branches.
Share regularly: Keep the stories alive by incorporating them into family life.
What begins as a New Year's resolution can transform into a family culture of memory preservation.
FAQ
What if I start late—can I still complete this in less than 12 months?
Absolutely. The 12-month plan provides breathing room and matches New Year timing, but the same tasks can be compressed into 6-9 months if you have more time to dedicate weekly. Focus on the core elements: interviews with key people, photo organization, and basic family tree. Everything else is enhancement.
Do I need expensive equipment or software?
No. You can complete this entire project with just your smartphone (for recording and photos), free family tree software (FamilySearch), and free storage (Google Drive or iCloud). Paid tools and services make things easier and prettier, but they're not essential. Start with free tools and upgrade only if you want to.
What if family members don't want to participate?
Focus on those who do. You can't force participation, but you can make it easy and appealing. Emphasize that this is for family preservation, not judgment or airing grievances. Sometimes reluctant family members become interested once they see others participating and enjoying it. For now, document what you can with willing participants.
How do I handle sensitive or controversial family topics?
Let storytellers control what they share. Make it clear that anything too private won't be shared beyond immediate family without permission. You can document sensitive topics without making them public—create a private archive for immediate family only. Sometimes the most important stories are the difficult ones, but they must be shared voluntarily.
What if I don't know where my family came from or have a complicated family situation?
Every family has a story worth preserving, even if it's complicated, incomplete, or unconventional. Focus on the family you do know and the stories you can access. Adoptees, step-families, and families with estrangements can still create meaningful archives about the family they have. Start with what you know and who you have access to.
Take Action Today
Here's what to do right now to make this resolution real:
Today:
- Block January interview time on your calendar
- Text or call the first person you'll interview
- Set up a simple folder system (even just "Family History 2025")
This week:
- Choose your recording method and test it
- Write down 10 questions to ask
- Announce your project to family
Before January ends:
- Complete your first interview
- Back up the recording
- Share one story with family
Don't wait for everything to be perfect. Start small, start now, and build momentum.
If you want to make this process dramatically easier, consider MyStoryFlow. The app guides you through exactly what questions to ask each month, records everything in your family's voices, organizes it automatically, and creates a beautiful archive your whole family can access. It's like having a family history expert coaching you through the entire year.
This is the year you finally do it. This is the year future generations will look back on and say, "Thank goodness someone preserved these stories."
Make it happen.
