How to Stick to New Year Resolutions

80% of the resolutions fail by February. How are you planning to follow through?

It's that time of the year again; the time when we all get a bit nostalgic, and make new plans and get excited about the future.

Yes, it's the end of this year.

Gosh, this year went by so quickly!

Talking about myself, I'm excited about what the future holds, and about the things I'm planning to execute this new year. Who else is excited about 2019? I guess you are, that's why you are here reading this post. In fact, you probably already have a few ideas about what resolutions you are going to make for 2019.

It's good to make new plans, hoping to improve overall and experience new things.

But did you know that only 8% people actually achieve their new year resolutions?

In fact, 80% of resolutions fail by February.

Why is that?

Well, first of, we usually make resolutions about the things that we find hard to do. It's very likely that you tried that thing in the past and failed, and so finally you want to give it another shot.

It's a habit that you want to develop. But you probably already know that old habits can be really difficult to break, and new habits are difficult to form.

To know more about how habits are formed and how it can be changed, I recommend reading The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg. 

How to Stick to New Year Resolutions Then?

So, we all know habits are difficult to form, but they are not impossible to form. Nothing good comes easy.

Following are some simple things you should keep in mind when it comes to making and sticking to your new year resolutions this year:

1. Know the "Why?"

First things first. You should know why you want to make so-and-so resolution.

It should be crystal clear in your mind what goals are you trying to achieve by making that resolution.

For example, if you're making a goal of exercising more, then take some time to think about why you want to exercise more? Is it to lose weight? Or get your body stronger? Or just to start living in a more healthy and active way?

If you are trying to save more money, list down the positive things that saving money would bring into your life. Say, it will help you get rid of the mortgage, buy something you wanted to buy for a very long time or maybe it will help you to save for your education.

Write down the things you are trying to achieve, and also what changes it will bring to your life.

Your goal should not be vague: that you "want to be a better person". Instead, it should be very clear what aspect you want to work on and why.

Once you are clear about the outcomes, it becomes easier to push through the process.

2. Make Realistic Goals:

Okay, understand this that when the calendar changes to the 1st of January of every year, the calendar changes but you don't. You are the exact same person you were on the 31st of December. So, why is it that we end up making some really unrealistic goals for the new year like we will be a completely different person?

You are going to be the same person with the same set of skills, still hating the same things you hated on 31st December.

This means, that if you hated exercising before, you will still be hating it in the new year.

Now, I don't mean that you shouldn't make ambitious goals. What I want to say is that start with baby steps.

If you previously hated exercising, making a resolution of working out 7 days a week is most likely going to fail. Because you hate doing it!

Instead, start with 3 days a week, or maybe 2 days a week. Hell, you can even start with once a week.

The point is not to be great right from the first day. The point is to get started. Then once you are comfortable with once a week routine, you can increase it to two days a week, then three days a week and so on.

Same goes for other types of resolution.

You want to save money, don't start by saying you will save $100 a week. Start with $10, and then increase the value.

You want to lose weight? Don't make a resolution of losing 100 pounds instead start with 20 pounds.

Realistic goals that are compatible with your current level of skills and abilities are more likely to succeed.

3. Plan:

Now that you have decided what aspect you will be working on, the next step is to plan how you are going to reach your goal.

Making a resolution is not enough, you guys!

You need to have a plan. It shouldn't be like "oh I want to lose weight". It shouldn't be vague if you really want to achieve the goal.

Do some research, figure out some ways fit for you to carry out the plan. 

Chop the whole journey into smaller chunks of goals. 

For example, if you made a goal of losing 20 pounds next year, make a goal of losing 1 pound per week. Then figure out what you need to do to lose 1 pound per week. And then stick to your plan and make it happen. Soon you will able to see the results. It always takes a little bit of time but you will indeed see the results. By the end of the week when you will see 1 pound less in the scale, that will further motivate you.

Therefore, smaller goals are important, in fact, more important than a distant larger goal to help you get going.

4. Revise Your Expectations:

This is especially necessary if you are trying to get into something totally new, with no or minimal knowledge on the subject.

In the beginning, you probably don't know what to expect. But once you gain a little knowledge on the subject you can always tweak your plans, or in fact, change it totally if that fits your needs better.

Once you know what you are getting yourself into, you can make better calculations about how much can be logically done in a certain amount of time, and what results can be expected.

So, what's important here? To increase your knowledge of the subject.

Keep researching. Find out new ways to save money, or find out different exercises that you can do, or find out more about nicotine addiction and withdrawal symptoms that will be helpful in quitting smoking etc.

Read, read, and read!

5. Detach Emotions With the Task:

One thing that really hinders our journey is the association of certain emotions with a particular task.

To understand better, look at this example: when you think about exercising what comes in your mind? You might remember about how out of breath you were after your workout routine, or how much your muscle ached the next day or how you were not able to do a single exercise correctly. Thinking about all these negative things develops a negative emotion in you, and your brain then always link exercising with negative emotions.

We have this habit of associating negative thoughts with certain tasks- quite often the things we don't like to do. This association is one of the biggest reason that we quite often fail to change the habits we want to get rid of, because we don't want to indulge in it and so we end up procrastinating.

To help with this problem mindfulness comes in handy.

Amygdala is responsible for the processing of our emotions. It has been found in a study that an 8-week training in mindfulness meditation can reduce the response of amygdala to emotional stimuli. This is true for both beginner and advanced meditators.

By practicing mindfulness we can actually become more non-judgmental about things happening to and around us, which can help you get past the feeling of negative emotions, and get through your workout routine without judgments.

Once you detach your emotions, you might actually see the positive results that it could bring more clearly.

Once you detach emotions with the task you are performing, this becomes a little bit easier.

6. Self-Discipline:

Remember this: if you don't change your mind and your attitude towards your resolutions, you can never achieve them.

You have to practice self-discipline.

You have to carry out the task required for you to reach your goal no matter what. You have to prioritize. No ifs and buts. No exceptions.

You can buy an expensive treadmill, but if you don't make up your mind and be strict with your plans, you can assume now itself that your treadmill is going to sit at the corner of the room eating dust, without anyone ever running on it.

Be serious, and try your best to execute what is required to be executed to reach that goal. 

Prioritize!

Repetition is the key. Remember, any bad habit that you might have is a habit because you repeated doing it again and again for a long period of time. Similarly, if you want to add a new good habit you have to discipline yourself on repeating the task as scheduled.

7. Stay in the Circle of People Doing Similar Things:

Take advantage of social media. Keep reading and watch videos to stay motivated and improve your current methods.

Try out new and different things you can do: new methods, new recipes, new exercises, new routes.

There are many people who share their journey to improvement online through their blogs and Instagram. You can do the same and get in the circle of those people. 

There are many subreddits on Reddit where people come together to share their individual progress and get inspiration from others.

It's a great way to stay motivated and keep going.

Remember This:

1. Falling out Once (Or Even a Few Times) Is Not the End:

It is very natural to fall out of your path a few times when you are trying to form a new habit. It's totally normal. The key here though is to keep going. It's okay if you miss a few milestones. That will only delay the result. It will still give you the result ultimately, just a little bit later than what you might have hoped.

It's okay to slip, and it's okay to feel demotivated sometimes. Remember that's normal.

You are not to abandon your plans at any cost.

So keep going no matter what.

2. Get Started Whenever You Can:

To bring about change or to start a new habit you don't need to wait for the new year to arrive. You can start whenever you are ready. Maybe you are not ready now, and maybe you prepare yourself by the end of January. So start in February.

Don't think that it's already April and that you will start next year.

Last year I made my resolutions by the end of May, and though I did not meet all of my resolutions, (because a lot of them required a lot more work than I anticipated) I got started and I have improved.

3. Don't Make Too Many Resolutions:

I understand you are motivated to be a better person, and you mostly end up making many resolutions at once.

I highly recommend against it.

Don't make 10 resolutions at once, instead if possible make just one resolution, with a maximum of 3 resolutions.

Don't put unnecessary pressure on yourself, because it's highly likely that won't be able to keep up with all 10 resolutions with all other responsibilities in your life, and this will only make you feel guilty.

I made the mistake of making too many resolutions last year, and though I got better than before I couldn't focus on any of the resolutions completely; I couldn't give my 100%. So, don't do that.

Conclusion:

Resolutions, in my opinion, is a great way to start the new year. It's an opportunity that you create for yourself to improve. However, most of us have seen failure in keeping up our resolutions.

But no matter how many times we have failed before, you can develop certain habits that will help you achieve your goals.

Remember, any bad habit that you might have becomes a habit because you repeatedly kept doing it again and again for a long period of time. So, if you want to develop a new habit this new year, you've got to keep on repeating and discipline yourself to follow through the plan you've created.

With these simple things discussed in this post, you will reach your goal this year.

Are you planning to make resolutions this year? Let me know down below what are your new year resolutions.

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Chains of habit are too light to be felt until they are too heavy to be broken.

-Warren Buffet

© Quirky Writes 2018