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How to Make (and Keep) a New Year's Resolution
Creating a Plan
Chances are you won't just wake up one day and suddenly change your life. To go where you want to go, you have to chart out a plan.
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SMART Resolutions
Pick a goal that is meaningful and doable, making sure it's coming from inside you, not imposed by others.
Make specific, realistic plans for your New Year Goal using the time-tested SMART Technique:
- Specific: Have a clear, specified goal
- Measurable: You should be able to quantify and validate the progress.
- Achievable: Don't have a big stretch goal that will overwhelm you.
- Relevant: Choose wisely what matters to you.
- Time-bound: Your goal should have a time limit or weekly checks and reviews.
Creating a Plan
Chances are you won't just wake up one day and suddenly change your life. To go where you want to go, you have to chart out a plan.
Quitting Bad Habits
For example: If you feel the cue of smoking, replace the smoking with some other activity like having a cup of coffee.
Your Inner Critic
While you're trying to follow your resolution, there will be inevitable obstacles and slip-ups that will discourage you. Do not punish yourself, just stop your inner critic from whispering negative things in your mind and carry on with your good work.
You can also try to reward yourself when you do what you intend to, to kick in positive emotions.
Being Discouraged
When you try to push yourself in the right direction by trying to build a good habit, there are forces inside you that will resist and have to be fought.
There will be negative thoughts related to progress that can be overcome by thinking positive, motivating thoughts. If positivity does not work, try being realistic and objective.
Wish. Outcome. Obstacle. Plan.
The W.O.O.P. Technique can work to make you focus on what is to be done:
- Wish: What is your goal?
- Outcome: What will result from attaining that goal?
- Obstacle: Knowing yourself, think about the obstacles or hurdles that could stop you from achieving your goal.
- Plan: How do you plan to take care of the whole process?
Adding Flexibility
Set slightly bendable and flexible plans so that you can meet them on a daily basis.
For example: If you set a rigid goal to exercise in the gym for 1 hour daily, it can fail, but if your goal is to go to the gym daily and get some exercise, even 15 minutes, then it has a higher chance of success.
The Help of a Community
A group supporting you with your goals can be an effective technique for motivation. It is a form of public commitment and peer pressure to keep you from postponing or giving up upon your goals.
You can also use social media to announce and provide updates on your self-improvement endeavor to garner support from people who know you.
The Money Game
Betting money or taking a financial pledge can help you motivate yourself on days you feel you cannot commit to your new routine.
Partnering Up
Online support groups and forums can help you find a person or a group of people with the same goal, who can foster a sense of community and help you stay on course.
Bad Influences
There will be people that may discourage you, try to make you a slacker again, or just thrust their negativity and inner jealousy on your positive goal-setting, trying to sabotage it.
Identify and stay away from negative influencers.
Your own Experiment
In case you miss your resolution, don't lose hope and start afresh. Keep moving in a positive direction, even with setbacks.
Be kind to yourself in case of a hurdle. You are your own experiment so keep experimenting.
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One Step Daily
Most people do not stick to their New Year's resolutions because they focus on the entire task.
By just focusing on the daily small steps, one is able to create a successful daily routine.
Keep It Practical
Dial back your goal for the New Year to be a more practical, pragmatic one, and your chances of success will rise dramatically.
Don't be too hard on yourself.
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Habit-formation apps are aspirational tools
They're less about distilling your life into a series of data points and more about becoming your ideal self: If you use their app, you too can become a person who practices good habits. You can be...
The 4 tendencies when it comes to habit formation:
- upholders: disciplined and respond to both internal and external expectations;
- obligers :can’t keep commitments to themselves but respond to expectations from others;
- questioners: ask why and can keep a habit if they understand the logic reasoning;
- rebels: hate being told what to do by others, so it has to be something they want to do.
Habit apps use the psychology of habit formation
- Many rely on a “streak” feature: they track how many consecutive days you’ve completed the habit;
- Other apps offer accountability features to pressure you into completing your goal;
- Some apps turn habit formation into a game: The app rewards users who complete their habits with badges and other virtual incentives.
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There are no such things as secrets when it comes to personal success
Doing something is better than saying you’re going to do something.
Practical Tips To Make Your Resolutions Stick Even Better ⚓️
Keep It Small — It’s about thinking big and acting small. You’ll achieve those big goals in time.
Measure Your Progress — If you don’t measure your progress, it’s safe to say that you are not making any.
Be Accountable To Yourself — One of the most important skills you can learn in life is to be self-reliant.