The Life And Death Of A New Year's Resolution

The Life and Death Of A NEW YEAR'S Did you make a resolution for 2014? You're not alone. About ½ of all Americans make resolutions each year. How long do resolutions last? Have you had trouble keeping resolutions in the past? If the answer is “Yes," welcome to a very full club: SUCCESS RATE: 7 days 71% Most of us can keep a resolution going for a whole week 1 month 64% Many are still hanging on 30 days later 6 months 46% More than half fizzle by 6 months 12 year 12% Nearly 9 out of 10 are a distant memory by year's end RIP At the end of the day, only a mere 10% Resolution of resolutions are successful. Yikes! 3 Hallmarks of a Failed New Year's Resolution GO BIG? TOO MUCH, FAIL TO PLAN? GO HOME. TOO SOON! PLAN TO FAIL. Grandiose goals that are very hard to reach (like paying off every credit card) or too abstract (such as "getting healthy") Unrealistic expectations and Trying to achieve these goals quickly by making sudden, drastic lifestyle changes poor planning that lead to discouragement and burnout The Secret But there's hope for the rest of us 90 percenters; research' shows that you CAN beat the odds! Small, Simple Steps Focus on one objective at a time Write a plan of action 3 Break your goal into small, specific steps. For example: Avoid "Giant Leaps" Instead, Take "Small Steps" Goal and Statements Like: Vague plans to "work out at the gym" several times a week Be sensible. Don't try to go from zero to Gym Queen in one day. Start with a beginner plan that prepares your body for working out. Get in Shape I'm going to join a gym and get fit this year! Doing anything you can to lose a significant amount of weight in the Drastic, ultra restrictive goals are nearly impossible to make permanent. Find a plan that's livable, and you'll be more likely to stick with it. Lose Weight next month No lunch for me – trying to lose 20 Ibs by Valentine's Day! Don't procrastinate. Pick a date and go for it! Kicking butts cold turkey... Quit Smoking tomorrow. I'm quitting smoking next week, just you wait and see! Ambiguous statements about increasing your salary Sit down and figure out how much you can afford to put in savings each month -- then have it automatically deducted and rolled into your savings account. Improve Finances I'm going to make way more money this year. Indefinite schemes to "get a new Look at the responsibilities of the job you want and try incorporating them into your routine. Start doing the job. Change Job/ job" or "advance at work" Advance I'm going to get promoted, I just Career know it! The title will follow. Stay on Track: Surround Yourself with Support and Inspiration No need to be shy! Tell friends about your endgame, and share accomplishments along the way. Focus on how great it will feel to achieve your goals, and don't forget to treat yourself when you've been good. Everyone falls off the Just get back on up there! wagon, sometimes. Wanting to be better is smart. Getting ahead of yourself is not. Stick with these tips, and get I did it! excited for an awesome new you! Sources: [1] Ray Williams. "Why New Year's Resolutions Fail." Psychology Today. December 19, 2012 http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/wired-success/201212/why-new-years-resolutions-fail [2] Norcross, J.C., Mrykalo, M.S., & Blagys, M.D. "Auld lang syne: Success predictors, change processes, and self-reported outcomes of New Year's resolvers and nonresolvers." Journal of Clinical Psychology, April 2002. v58(4), p397-405. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11920693 [3] New Year's Resolutions Experiment. Quirkology. 2007. http://www.quirkology.com/UK/Experiment_resolutions.html Cited in http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052748703478704574612052322122442 [4] Ebrahimi, Rod. "The Science Behind New Year's Resolutions (and How to Use It to Achieve Yours)." Lifehacker. January 2, 2012. http://lifehacker.com/5871955/the-science-behind-new-years-resolutions-and-how-to-use-it-to-achieve-yours [5] Leo Widrich "The science of new year's resolutions: Why 88% fail and how to make them work." Buffer (blog). January 1, 2013 http://blog.bufferapp.com/the-science-of-new-years-resolutions-why-88-fail-and-how-to-make-them-work Presented by: ©090 weightwatchers Written by @ultrawriting This work is created under a Design by @josephlebaron Creative Commons License BY NC ND