The Smart Way To Perfect Your New Year Resolutions

Do you struggle to execute your New-Year resolutions? If so, you are not alone. Research shows that most of us fail woefully in following through with our New Year plans. But, that doesn’t have to be the case. I will show you an intelligent way to get better results in 2022.

“Most people overestimate what they can do in one year and underestimate what they can do in ten years”.

Bill Gates

What were the top five New-Year resolutions in 2019–2020?

The following list includes the five most popular New-Year resolutions set by individuals worldwide within the past two years. I am sure that you will resonate with most of the resolutions below.

Eat healthier was the goal chosen by 43% of Americans and 44% of UK respondents.
Exercise more was the preferred goal by 59% of Americans
Lose weight was the resolution selected by 48% of US residents
Save more money / spend less money was chosen by half of Americans
Get organized

As you can see from the list above, the common themes in recent years revolved around health and fitness, personal growth, and improved finances. Simply stated, New Year resolutions consist of plans to either stop bad habits or start good ones.

Why do most people fail to follow through on their resolutions?

They attempt to make significant life changes and take on too many tasks. They try to change many of their habits simultaneously and rapidly. The saying goes, “Roman was not built in a day.” A better approach would be to tackle one weakness at a time. Once achieved, they can focus on another task. Also, a gradual process is better for habit change to be sustainable in the long run.
Failure to mentally prepare oneself before setting a New-Year resolution increases failure rates. It would be best if you did not jump into a New Year resolution in the spur of the moment.
Setting resolutions that are not relevant or beneficial to one’s current circumstances will lower the ability to complete. Perhaps, it was your spouse or employer who talked you into making the changes? People are more likely to stick with resolutions in harmony with their dreams and priorities.
Resolutions that are vague and not specific enough. It is not enough to want to be “healthier” this year. You need to clearly articulate the parameters of health that you are aiming to achieve — more on this point below.
Lastly, simply thinking about your goals and not writing them down lowers the chance of accomplishing them. The reasons for these are many: the writing process assists you in articulating the actions needed to achieve your aims and makes it easier to remember your plans.

Don’t like ads? Become a supporter and enjoy The Good Men Project ad free

Are New-Year resolutions still relevant?

The short answer is YES. Having a New Year resolution leads to higher success in achieving the stated goal than not having one. For example, in a study, 46% of people who made resolutions completed them at the 6th-month mark, compared with only 4% success in those who did not create new year resolutions.

Image by Shutterstock.com

Setting New-Year resolutions-the smart way

The SMART goal-setting framework is attributable to Peter Drucker, Management Guru. The acronym represents the five essentials for great goal-setting, ensuring that goals are clear enough to execute successfully.

S-Specific. Be as specific as possible. Adress the goal’s why, what, who, when and where.
M-Measurable, in terms of how many steps or much effort you need to execute to reach your goal.
A-Achievable or attainable while stretching your abilities.
R-Relevant or realistic within your timeframes and life plan.
T-Time bound or time-sensitive for completion.

Using the Smart framework, rather than setting a New Year resolution to “lose weight”, which is very vague, you will resolve “to lose 10kg (22 pounds) by 31 December 2022, through increased exercises and reduced take-away meals.”

How to succeed in your New-Year resolutions

Please consider the following point:

Mentally prepare yourself before contemplating any habit changes.
You do not have to wait for the end of the Year to set New-Year resolutions. You can start now.
Set goals the SMART way, goals that are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound
Write your resolutions down on paper, diary, board, digital journal, or any of the online portals.
Break up your big plans down into smaller tasks, and place these into your daily to-do lists and calendars.
Please do not keep your plans secret, for a secret plan is one that will likely not materialize. Instead, share them with at least one trusted person, who can hold you accountable for doing what you said you would. Meet regularly with that person to discuss your progress and challenges.
Persist with the new habit until it becomes automatic, which may take up to 66 days. Don’t give up! Remember that new habits are hard initially, chaotic in the middle, but easy in the end.
Celebrate your small wins on the way to attaining your big goals. The positive feeling you get from this will act as a booster to spur you on. You will become more confident in the process.
Do not be so hard on yourself if you fail to hit the mark. You can always try again tomorrow or next year.

Bad habits are easy to form, but hard to live with. Good habits are hard to form but easy to live with. And as Goethe said, ‘Everything is hard before it’s easy”.

Brian Tracey