How to Stick to your New Year’s Resolutionsmian

Every year, millions of Americans begin the year with a set of new year’s resolutions or goals they help to fulfill throughout the year. Unfortunately, however, very few of these Americans actually end up feeling successful in completing their resolution. It’s important to remember, a resolution is a habit to work on for the entire year, and habits take time to form and stick. Keeping this habit will not start overnight, so follow a few of these simple tips to make the habit stick and keep your goal through the entirety of the year!

Don’t Make Unrealistic Resolutions

As tempting as it might be, don’t set a crazy resolution you know you absolutely will not be able to accomplish. Even if you have the dreams and willingness to do it, you have to also consider how much time and effort you are willing to add to this resolution. Instead of writing a resolution that says you hope to run a marathon (something that is roughly 26 miles of running) with no running practice at all, start off smaller with something like a 5K, something only about 3 miles of running.

Make Specific Goals – Not Broad Ones

Don’t just say, “I am going to lose weight.” Set a specific goal by saying specifically how much weight you hope to lose. You can make it even more specific by saying a certain point in the year by which you expect to lose said weight. Don’t choose ambiguous terminology to describe your goal or habit you want to set. Choose strong and specific words to keep yourself on track with the goal and motivation.

Don’t Try To Focus On Accomplishing Too Much

When you begin to focus on too many goals, you start to get sidetracked. You begin to try to figure out how to handle each goal instead of focusing on one main goal. Don’t spread yourself too thin! Focus on one or two very specific, related goals to keep yourself in check and make sure you don’t get distracted in fulfilling your resolution.

Give Yourself Small Gifts For Reaching Small Goals

Don’t let your hard work go unnoticed and without rewards. Every time you achieve a small specific goal for yourself, give yourself a reward or gift of your choice to keep yourself motivated to keep going. Running with the above example, you hope to lose a certain amount of weight. Maybe for every five pounds you lose, you give yourself small treats like a shopping spree, an appointment to get your nails done, or an excuse to take a small vacation. Remind yourself that your resolution will help you accomplish a successful year to focus all of your motivation on your resolution.

Keep a Support System

Looking back at the marathon example, if you want to teach yourself to run a marathon, or even simply just run long periods of time without stopping, get support! Find friends to run with to keep each other on track and motivated to practice every day. Some mornings, you may dread waking up at the crack of dawn to run and practice, but with a buddy or two in tow, you can keep each other accountable to work on your resolution often.

Remember, It’s a Slow Process

Once again, it’s important to remember that change is a slow process. You can’t expect to wake up the next morning and have your resolution completely resolved and accomplished. Learn from the mistakes you make in the process of accomplishing your goal. Don’t be disappointed if things don’t go right the first time around. It’s important to persevere and stick with your resolution all year. It isn’t the ending goal of the resolution that really matters – what matters is the journey you go on and the steps you take to reach that goal.