Creating New Year’s resolutions has been a tradition for centuries. However, for some people, it’s more about reflecting on obstacles they overcame to get where they are today than about quitting a bad habit. John Heywood famously said, “Rome wasn’t built in a day.” The same thing can be said for turning your life around. It doesn’t happen overnight. It takes vast determination and hard work to start a new beginning. Perhaps you’re thinking of turning your life around for the New Year. Or maybe you are simply craving a fresh start. In any case, these 25 Heartwarming Stories of People Turning Their Lives Around should give you the inspiration you need to get started. It wasn’t until Mfume was in his early twenties that he realized he needed to turn his life around. Four years after enrolling in college, he graduated from John Hopkins University. He was later elected to the Baltimore City Council, Congress, and then became president of the NAACP. Her life took a turn for the worse when she married an abusive mobster. She was forced to put her dreams on hold to be their getaway driver. Luckily, Durante was able to take back control of her life. She divorced her husband and started her own stunt-driving company called Performance Two. He was finally apprehended by the French police when he was 21 years old. After getting released from prison, Abagnale decided to give up his criminal ways and devote his time to helping companies and law enforcement agencies with fraud security. “God has a plan for your life. You can see it in every step you took. I’m the hat man. I just started doing what I liked to do to help people,” said Boogaart. Before dying at the age of 93, he spent 15 years knitting hats for the homeless. During those years, he knit over 8,000 hats. He proved it’s never too late to turn your life around. August learned the man’s name was Atkinson. Before long, August decided he wanted to do more than just buy the man a meal. He wanted to help change his life. With a little help and guidance, Atkinson got a job at Safeway and was able to turn his life around. Lee turned his life completely around so that he could help others. Over the years, he has distributed over 250,000 pounds of food to people in need all across the nation. She was living at Fox Laundry when she met Zach Galifianakis, an American actor, who admired her charm. She has an extremely positive outlook on life even though she has lived an extremely difficult life. Galifianakis wanted to give her a fresh start, so he bought Mimi her own apartment across the street from Fox Laundry. Her parents were never able to truly bounce back. After the fire, they moved from place to place, which put a lot of strain on her and her family. Zen is now working as a peer advocate trying to make a positive change for individuals who face housing challenges. Despite growing up in an unstable environment, he found comfort in the simple things around him. When he and his mother met Ms. Hedda, founder of the Hunts Point Alliance for Children, their whole life changed. Ms. Hedda gave them the support they needed to start a new life. She helped William’s mother find a steady job and get William accepted into a semi-boarding high school. He often had to steal food from a grocery store just so his family had something to eat. Even though times were extremely rough, he knew he had to keep fighting. “Hold onto that fundamental quality of faith. Have faith that on the other side of your pain is something good,” says Johnson. He is now considered one of the leading stars of Hollywood. After her mother passed away, she had no family and no place to go. Liz fought to pull herself out of the difficult place she found herself in. She dedicated her life to pursuing education at Humanities Preparatory Academy, which led to her being accepted into Harvard. With nowhere to go, he took to the streets where he eventually hit rock bottom. O’Dea picked himself up and joined an alcohol support group. Slowly, his life started to come together. While volunteering at a political campaign, he met his future business partner, Tom Culligan. Together they created the Second Cup, one of the biggest Canadian coffee chains. Their friendship was instantaneous and he showed Andrews the value of reading. “Remember, young man; experience is not the best teacher; other people’s experiences are the best teachers,” said Jones. Andrews also learned about perspective. The mind can turn any seemingly negative action into a positive experience. With his new understanding of the meaning of life, he was able to turn his own life around. He went on to become a New York Times bestselling author and motivational speaker. While living out of a small bus, they roamed from place to place. Eventually, Carrey moved into a tent on his sister’s property. Despite all the challenges, he never lost hope. He even admits it was during those difficult times that he was able to truly understand the value of humor. Oher’s childhood was unstable and he bounced around foster homes until he finally found his forever family when the Tuohy family came into his life. Despite Oher’s troubled past, he determined to make something of himself. With support from his new family, hard work, and dedication, he was able to become a college football star and a top NFL draft pick. Eventually, he and his son were evicted from their apartment and slept in subway stations as a means to survive. Gardner refused to let his circumstances define him. He took a non-paid internship with a prestigious brokerage firm, which led him to become a multi-millionaire stockbroker on Wall Street. A troubled teen, Perry moved to Atlanta in hopes of producing a play he had written. Sadly, it failed six times. Yet, Perry continued chasing his dreams even if it meant sleeping in his car. Finally, in 1998, his play became a hit and his entertainment career skyrocketed. After getting evicted, Jessica found salvation at Bridges Safehouse. Her new community gave her the help she needed to start a new life for herself and her family. She began taking college classes at her local college and earned a degree in Nursing. During his early teenage years, he started to get in trouble. When he was 16 years old, he was caught stealing two cases of alcohol from a local convenience store. Public records also show that he punched a man in the face while trying to escape from the police. Wahlberg eventually turned his life around and found his passion for acting. Just when they were about to give up, they were blessed with their baby boy. At that time, everything in their lives seemed perfect. Then on June 19, 2014, their whole world changed. Nash stopped breathing in his sleep and passed away. Shelly and Todd suffered an unimaginable loss. Rather than letting their depression consume them, however, they created an international movement. On the ninth of every month, along with a random act of kindness, they would hand out a card with their baby’s picture that read, “Have a Nash Day.” The idea went viral on social media and millions of people participated. Carter tried to use his music as a way to escape from reality. Towards the end of 1999, his music was finally starting to get recognized. It was also around this time when Carter was arrested for stabbing a record executive. After pleading guilty, he was able to walk away with just three years’ probation and a new perspective on life. In 2011, she was trapped in a grassfire. The tragedy left her body so severely burned that it took almost three years of hospital treatment to recover. In the accident, she lost seven fingers and almost lost her will to continue living. However, she overcame her tragedy and dedicated her life to humanitarian work. Pitt now works with InterPlast, a non-profit organization that offers survivors a chance to receive life-changing reconstructive surgery. When she made it back home, she quit her career in finance to start training as a yoga teacher, which transitioned into her becoming a Buddhist nun. In 2015, she founded Opening Your Heart to Bhutan, a UK charity that helps special-needs children in the Himalayan Kingdom of Bhutan. Trejo spent over ten years (collectively) in prison for various crimes including robbing a liquor store, selling drugs, and being involved in a shootout. Even after all of that, he was able to start over and make a new life for himself. “I’d rather shoot for the moon and miss the starts than shoot for the gutter and make it,” said Trejo. “I knew it was now or never to pursue my lifelong dream of owning my own restaurant,” said Gold. After a little luck and a lot of determination, he was able to open his own restaurant. “Eighteen years later, we’re still here and doing better than ever. I’m eternally grateful for the layoff and the opportunity to pursue my dream,” said Gold.
