Well, guys, we’ve made it — it is officially 2013. It is a brand new year, filled with endless opportunities and possibilities.

I’m not one for New Year’s resolutions, mainly because I only end up more stressed than I was before the resolution.

So, this year I sought a different approach.

I turned 22 in November, and for my birthday a friend gave me three books written by Tucker Max. He’s said to have created the “fratire” genre of literature with the 2006 release of his book, “I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell.” He followed up with “Assholes Finish First” and “Hilarity Ensues.”

I only have one thing to say about him: the man is a genius. He has life — and the key to being happy — figured out.

And you know what? It’s actually pretty simple. A passage from “Hilarity Ensues” explains it perfectly:

“What kind of life did I want to lead? One I loved, one I was proud of, and one that made me happy?  Or a life that other people told me I was going to lead, but I hated? Looking at it that way, there wasn’t really a choice. It came down to one simple thing for me: Everyday I have to wake up and look at myself in the mirror, and if I’m not excited to live the day in front of me, proud of who I am and what I’m spending my time doing…then what’s the f—ing point?”

That will be my approach to 2013.

If you know anything about Max, call him a He-Man Woman Hater, an asshole or whatever you want, but the man’s got it figured out. It’s OK to have fun and live your life for one person: you.

All my life I’ve tried to make sure others are happy, often at the expense of my own happiness. My undergraduate career has been bogged down with working multiple jobs, the ever-present need to excel in academics (to please my family) and doing what others told me to do. Do I regret any of it? No.

I do wish, though, that I had learned a long time ago it’s OK to be my own person.

More importantly, it’s OK — it’s necessary, even — to stand up and say, “This is my life, and this is how I’m going to live it. I will do what makes me happy, not what others tell me I should do.”

I’ve been faced with a lot of tough choices in terms of my future and what path my life is going to take. There have been many moments when I’ve felt like I have to choose a particular option only to please someone else, when I know the last thing I’ll be is happy.

But that’s no way to live life, and I would encourage you to realize that, too. For many of us, this is the last period of our lives where we’ll be free enough to do the fun things like partying, traveling or chasing our wildest dreams. This is also the best period of your life to decide what you want to do with just that — your life.

Life is short. It is cliché, but it’s true. You have to do what you want to do (within reason, of course), even if it seems selfish at first, because in the end, you’re the one who has to live with the choices you make. Being happy really is that simple.

And for that little life lesson, I have to say thank you, Tucker Max.