Why Do Resolutions Fail?
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Research has shown it is more effective to make resolutions at New Year’s than at any other time of the year.
In fact, one study found that people who made resolutions on
January 1st were 10 times more likely to stick with them 6 months later than
people who made their resolutions at other times of the year.
But now the bad news: even a resolution made at New Year's will
most likely fail, which is why gyms are packed in January, but they start to
clear out by March. Research has found that only around 8% of people can stick
with their resolutions through the end of the year.
So why is this? And, how do we avoid that trap?
Part of the misconception with any planning or goal-setting is that most of us think that in order to make big changes in our lives, that we have to make some sort of really big effort, in order to achieve the goal. Let’s use the example of trying to run a marathon for the first time; you might start out with the plan to run 7 or 8 miles three times a week, that seems kind of proportionate to your goal. In the beginning there will be excitement, which will add to your motivation, so you will do it for the first few weeks. But there comes a time when the excitement wears off and the motivation will start to lag, and running those 7 or 8 miles is going to feel…hard to do and maintain. And what happens? We stop. Or find a reason as to why we can’t continue or go out and do the run today. Being overly ambitious with our goals is one of the ways we fall into the trap of not being able to stick with them and accomplish what we set out to do.
Let’s try and fix this.
The truth is you're much better off if you pick small targets
that you can hit consistently. In James Clear's book "Atomic Habits"
he presents the idea that if you can get just 1% better every day at something,
it will take a minimum amount of effort, but over time the effects will
compound, sort of like the concept of compound interest. The author proposes
the two-minute rule: 'pick something that you can do in just two minutes'. That
way you can't say you don't have the time, or it will take too long to do. Once
that habit sticks, then you can try to extend it and overtime you build up the
momentum to accomplish what you set out to do.
One of the biggest problems that most of us face is that they are often too vague. The most common resolutions every year are to lose weight, exercise more, and to eat better.
The problem is that these goals so nondescript that it's hard to
know if you're making progress, and it becomes really easy to regress into your
old habits. Goal-setting and the science behind it says your goals
(resolutions) need to be specific AND, you need to write them down. People who
write down their goals are 40% more likely to achieve them. That is pretty
significant just by taking that step of putting pen to paper.
The other important piece is being able to track your progress.
It should be in an obvious and very visual way. Whether you have a calendar, spreadsheet, or online tool that you can use, it needs to be something that helps you see that you are making progress to your goal.
