Time is flying and we will soon be at that time again where we will be making New Year’s Resolution. New year’s new me sounds good in theory. But research shows must New Year’s resolutions fail. So why is that happening? Why do we wait till December 31st to start our goals just to fail at them by the end of January?
Why New Year’s Resolutions don’t work:
We take on too much
We want to completely change who we are and want it immediately. Our New year’s resolutions are losing weight, quitting smoking, or other drastic things that take time. We have these big changes but to see a big change, you have to start with a small change.
For example, if you want to lose weight your first thing should be making a plan to exercise for at least 10 minutes. Then you can increase it and slowly add more. If you go to the gym every day for January that’s a hard habit to add so drastically. Instead, you can you go to the gym 3 times a day. Pick the action based on what you think you can achieve. It doesn’t matter if it is small. If you improve 1 percent every day imagine what that adds up to over time?
We don’t have a plan
Make a plan for your goals don’t just have resolutions. If you want to lose weight ask yourself how are you going to lose weight. Use the SMART goals technique and make your goals specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and has a time limit on it.
Losing 5 pounds is specific and measurable, add 2 months to it and it is achievable. The relevance can be that you want to be healthier and feel healthier. The 2 months is the time limit. Actually, writing down your goals and how you are going to go about them can help you achieve them.
It is important to know the WHY of your resolution. That will add to the motivation. Why do you want to lose weight?
You need to start small
When you start small you can take the time to make that small thing a habit then you can slowly add more and more on. It takes 21 days to make a habit. Your goal can be to become healthier but there are so many parts to that so pick a small part for example drinking 2 more glasses of water every day. Add that to your lifestyle for 21 days then start something else. Build on your actions and have long term and short term goals
You don’t need to start on the 1st
Who said you need to start on the 1st or a Monday or in the morning. You can start whenever you want to so stop using that as a goal and start today. In 2 months you would have already made something a habit instead of waiting till January and starting.
Make the action easy
Make your goals easy, to begin with. You don’t have to start with a 5k run, to begin with, you can add a minute every day. 1 minute seems so small but the impact it will happen in the long term will be remarkable.
Handling small set backs
With any goal there might be a cheat day or something might go wrong. With New Year’s resolution you have waited for that clean slate for so long and then something tiny happens that makes it go wrong and you want a clean slate again. It’s okay to have minor set backs its part of goal setting.
Wrap up for why new year’s resolutions fail
So are you still going to wait till January 1st or are you starting with your goals today! You can achieve it all you just need to do is start.
