Nora Roberts – “you do not go after what you want, you’ll never have it. If you do not ask, the answer will always be no”.
The New Year brings a blank slate — a fresh opportunity to achieve the goals you didn’t reach in the previous year, break bad habits, or make positive, meaningful changes in your life. Setting New Year’s resolutions is a great way to reflect on how you’d like to grow and improve in the year ahead. But did you know that research by the University of Scranton found that only 8% of people achieve their New Year’s resolutions, meaning that a whopping 92% fail?
There are several reasons why people often fail to meet their New Year’s resolutions. These include being too vague about their goals, not writing them down, lacking commitment, not having a clear plan of action, setting overly ambitious goals, and putting too much pressure on themselves. No need to panic – there are plenty of ways to stick to your New Year’s. Here are five ways you can!
- Write down your goals – Writing down your goals helps you visually see what you want to achieve and holds you accountable. After jotting down your goals, place them somewhere you’ll see them regularly. Research by Dr. Gail Matthews, a psychology professor at the Dominican University of California, found that people are 42% more likely to fulfil their goals by writing them down. So go on – write what you want to achieve!
- Be specific – Often, people are too vague or generic when making their New Year’s resolutions. Instead of saying, ‘I want to eat more healthily,’ replace it with ‘I’ll add more fruits and veggies into each meal,’ or ‘I’ll eat fewer sweets,’ or instead of blanky saying, ‘I want to get fit,’ swap it for ‘I’ll go for a walk or run at least once or twice a week’. Get the drift? Be specific and transparent with your intentions. Simplifying your goals gives you a good place to start!
- Set achievable goals – Set goals that are within your capacity to achieve. Take small steps to achieve your bigger aspirations. Climbing Mount Everest might be on your bucket list, but if it’s not able to happen in the New Year, don’t discard it; instead, work towards it by setting achievable goals in the New Year, like researching, training for it, and climbing mountains locally. It’ll allow you to stay committed by managing your expectations of what you can achieve without putting pressure on yourself. Too often, when people feel like something is too much work, they won’t see it through!
- Keep up the motivation – Keep up the motivation! Sometimes, it can be hard to do alone, so sharing your goals with friends, family and others in your community might help encourage you to keep going. Other ways to keep up the motivation include finding like-minded people who share your desires. So, if getting fit is what you aspire to do in the New Year, then join a gym, fitness class or even a walking or running club.
- Be flexible – As the New Year begins, you might find yourself off to a strong start, but as the months roll on, it can be easy to lose the momentum. That’s alright— just be flexible. Adjust your goals as needed, especially when life gets hectic – we all know some months will be busier than others. Track your progress, keep pushing forward and don’t lose sight of what you want!
Wishing you all a Happy New Year!