When New Year comes around, many of us want to be better versions of ourselves. However, more often than not these resolutions do not last until February let alone all year. Why is that?
We discuss here what some of the most common New Year’s resolutions are along with some top tips on how you can stick to them successfully.
Most Common New Year’s Resolutions
1. Exercise More.
2. Lose Weight.
3. Eat more healthily.
4. Learn a new skill.
5. Focus on self-care and wellbeing.
6. Stop smoking.
7. Spend more time with friends and family.
8. Drink less alcohol.
9. Save money.
10. Find a new job.
11. Become more organized.
12. Travel more.
13. Read more.
14. Make new friends.
15. Manage stress better.
16. Enjoy life to the fullest.
17. Learn a new language.
18. Get more or better sleep.
19. Spend less time on social media.
20. Spend less time watching TV.
21. Run a half marathon or marathon.
22. Have a baby.
How to succeed at your New Year’s resolution.
When you decide on your New Year’s resolution you can have the best intentions to succeed at it, but in reality it is extremely difficult. Here are some things to consider when choosing your new year’s resolution to help you pick a target that is realistic to achieve.
• Be specific
When setting your resolution be as specific as possible. If you want to save money, choose an amount. If you want to lose weight, choose how much weight.
• Make it measurable
Leading on from the first point, having a resolution that is not only specific but measurable can really help you stay on track. If you want to lose one stone set a target date ie, I will lose one stone for my best friend’s wedding in July.
• Think about how you are going to achieve it.
Many people make a resolution but do not decide on an action plan to achieve success. Once you have your big goal in sight, create mini goals or milestones to hit throughout the year. This can help the resolution seem more manageable and helps you measure your progress.
• Is your resolution even achievable?
By creating your action plan, you will be able to see if your resolution is achievable. Setting a timeline can help you be realistic with your goals. If you are creating a plan but think it will be a rush, then you are more than likely not going to be successful.
• Does the resolution excite you?
It is important to choose a resolution that excites you. If your goal is to lose weight you may not enjoy the hard work that you will have to do in order to achieve success. If you think the end result will bring you joy then you will be more motivated. Many people say their goal is to exercise more by going to the gym. However, if the thought of going to the gym fills you with dread, then opt for another form of exercise that suits you more. You may find that going running or joining a team sport will make you happier.
• Get prepared
Think about how you are going to achieve your resolution before the new year starts. Don’t leave it until January 1st to even consider it. You need to be mentally prepared for change.
• Record your progress
Try and record how well you are doing. Write down your progress and even if you reach the end of the year and you haven’t stuck to your resolution, you will have a record of how far you got and what went wrong. Use this information to motivate you for next year and potentially change or amend your goals if they are unrealistic.
• Stay positive
Whatever your resolution is, it will involve hard work and dedication. If it was easy then you would already be doing it!
• Don’t go for massive change
If you are aiming for a resolution that will involve a big change, you are more at risk of failure. In order for change to be sustainable, the transition should be gradual. Make smaller changes first and build up from there.
• Allow room for error
Try not to be too hard on yourself. If your resolution is to quit smoking, don’t be too mad with yourself if you end up having a couple of cigarettes. It’s a big change to suddenly stop overnight and if you are too hard on yourself, you will feel like you have failed and will be more likely to just give up entirely. Instead, if you have a couple of setbacks, take a minute to evaluate why it happened and just move on.
• Stick to one resolution
Don’t spread yourself too thin and try and accomplish too much. Having several resolutions is unrealistic. Stick to one and focus on this. It means you can dedicate your efforts on this resolution and not be distracted with trying to accomplish several other things as well.
• Share your resolutions
Tell your friends and family what your resolution is. Having other people know about it can act as motivation as they will ask you for updates and you will want to be able to prove to them that you are on track. Sharing resolutions also means you can try and help your loved ones stick to their resolutions as well.
Hopefully these tips will help you focus on your goals and review them to ensure they are achievable. Planning your resolutions in advance before the year starts can really help you stay on track.
