Tips for keeping your New Year's Resolutions

As the new year approaches, it’s not uncommon to make a list of New Year’s resolutions for the upcoming year. But how often do people actually achieve these goals after the newness of the year ends? According to the Journal of Clinical Psychology, only 46% of those who made New Year’s resolutions were successful, therefore, more than half fail but we can change that with some tips for keeping your New Year’s resolution.

Learning how to achieve goals starts before you even set your goals. By reflecting and doing a self-audit to better understand the choices that got you to where you are and the habits that hinder you from being your best self then you can forecast the best journey and goals that will get you to the ultimate life you deserve. Think about it. In every industry, an appraisal or evaluation is always done before any big changes, investments, or decisions.

Changing is no easy task, especially changing ingrained traits and habits that’s been on autopilot for years. So it is important to take a step back and get ready for that impending change. Taking personal inventory is the first breakthrough. You have to mentally prepare for change. Make your goals with yourself in mind, being honest about what you’re willing to do to get where you want to go helps to create more realistic goals from a genuine place.

Hence, setting goals for the new year needs the right intention and mindset. By taking your habits and choices into consideration, you’re not setting yourself up for failureand it would be easier to keep resolutions. Just by doing this one step, you’re halfway to achieving goals.

Here are some more tips on how to keep New Year’s resolutions by creating better ones:

1. Set a goal that motivates you and has deep-rooted value to you:

People set goals that are not truly what they want or are not willing to work for. These goals could be out of a sense of dedication to or coerced by a spouse, parent, manager, peer pressure, etc. While having some external support is lovely, if you don’t have the same passion, there’s a slim chance of succeeding at keeping resolutions from the get-go.

2. Be realistic and choose a manageable amount of resolutions:

Resolutions are not magic, you’ll have to put in the work. A common mistake when setting resolutions is spreading yourself too thin and having too long of a list. Don’t choose to commit to 20 new year’s resolutions when you barely have time in your busy schedule to fully commit to 2. There is so much and no more you can do in 12 months.

3. Use the SMART framework:

It’s easy to set goals badly which could lead to poor follow-through when it comes to setting resolutions. Fortunately, using the SMART goal-setting is the best way how to keep new year’s resolutions:

Specific - Articulate your New Year 2023 resolutions as clearly as possible.
Measurable - Quantify your resolution if possible.
Attainable - Choose a goal within the realm of possibility yet challenging.
Relevant - Keep it relevant to goals with deep meaning to you.
Time-sensitive - Give yourself an adequate time frame to achieve goals.

4. Break up bigger goals into smaller goals

A lot of people tend to be over-eager when it comes to new year’s resolutions. We truly intend on following through but may create goals that are too big to achieve in the time frame or with current resources. Consequently, all you have to do is divide a big goal into smaller goals that are more attainable.

5. Write down your goals and make them visible

There’s something about consistently writing down and seeing your goals for the new year that gets you into action. It’s like forming new habits, the more your brain sees the things it has to do, the more you’ll train it to get into gear and follow through. Now that you know how to keep resolutions for the new year 2023, it’s time to put these new year resolution tips to the test!

Some other tips may include getting an accountability partner, doing monthly progress checks, keeping a journal to record the progress, patterns, or even the lack thereof, etc. Whatever you decide to do, remember motivation comes from keeping at it consistently and if you have to start over, grace is always a great place to start from.