How Are Your New Year's Resolutions Going?
Article by Joana Kim and photo by Kristy Leung
2021 marks the start of a new year, and although almost only a month has passed since New Year’s, at the same time - a whole month has nearly passed. That’s just about 30 days spent either being in tune with your new year goals, or perhaps you’ve fallen off track a bit.
When thinking about the turn of a new year, one common topic that may come up is New Year’s resolutions. New Year’s resolutions have quite the mixed review. Some individuals are diligent resolution-makers, setting a list every year, and others don’t see the necessity in making resolutions at the start of every year. Then there are others who may fall in some sort of a middle ground; they might occasionally enjoy hearing and seeing other’s resolutions, but don’t end up making their own. I personally don’t usually make them, but at the start of this new year - I took the liberty in doing so.
Apparently, around 6 weeks into a new year (mid-February) is a time when many resolutions start to fizzle out. Of course, there is no reason to let that discourage or define how your own personal resolutions will set out, but being almost a month into the year and closer to hitting that mark, I thought it might be a fitting time to regroup my own fading resolutions, and this is for anyone else who may feel the same way.
Here are some reminders or tips to help revive that list, from my own personal realizations to possibly even yours:
1. Knowing the why behind your resolutions is important.
Oftentimes, the easy part in making resolutions is well, making them, and the execution is what requires more work. And it might sound obvious, but keeping any resolution becomes a lot harder when you don’t really know why you’re doing it in the first place. It’s beneficial to understand why you’re doing what you’re doing, so that you won’t lose motivation for your resolutions too soon. A tip would be to write down all your resolutions again and see how and why each is important to you - or not. Doing this can help you take out those that you realize aren’t as relevant or necessary to you when you come to think of it, and reinforce the motivation behind those that are.
2. Be practical about your resolutions.
Next, as passionate as you may be about your New Year’s resolutions and the reason behind them, the truth is that it’s hard to actually follow through without applying practical steps into your daily life. For example, one of my personal resolutions is to be more active. I know if I schedule in one hour workouts every morning - as great as that sounds - that’s not a very realistic goal for me right now. What would be more helpful would be to break down my resolution into more feasible steps at first, such as scheduling in something as simple as a 15- 20 minute walk after dinner. Once you set a practical goal for your resolution like so, it translates into something that you feel like you can actually do, and if you want, you can gradually build up the habit however desired throughout time. But at the start, try to see if you can break down your resolutions into tangible steps.
3. Be patient with yourself.
It’d be amazing if every resolution we set would be successful from the start. The truth is, I think New Year’s resolutions can serve as a lesson to teach us that it’s fine to let ourselves fail at times along the way; I believe that’s part of the process of simply just trying, which is a feat in itself. If you mess up, or find yourself repeatedly unsuccessful in keeping your resolutions - that’s okay; it may even be a sign to re-examine your resolutions or take a step back and start small, but don’t let setbacks discourage you from moving forward.
4. Find accountability.
We all need a bit of accountability every now and then, and this goes the same for New Year’s resolutions. Find a friend to share your resolution with, and ask them to check up on you from time to time to make sure you’re keeping up with what you decide to commit to this year - when you yourself forget. Or if there comes a resolution both of you want to try and implement, taking on the challenge together can be a fun and effective method to overcome resolution inertia. For example, if the resolution is related to eating healthier (the third most popular resolution of 2020!), sharing one new healthy recipe each weekend, or sending each other pictures of the day’s lunch are little ways to add companionship and motivation in building your resolutions into reality.
5. Find ways to make it more of a pleasure, and less of a burden.
Studies show that approximately 80% of New Year’s resolutions do not succeed in time for the end of the year - reinforcing the fact that keeping New Year’s resolutions are not easy. However, resolutions shouldn’t be something that stresses you out whenever you think about it. After all, they’re there for you, so why not find ways to add some personal enjoyment into your resolutions, making the whole experience seem less daunting? For example, if I want to wake up earlier every day, and I’m not naturally a morning person, creating a morning schedule could motivate me to wake up early in a way that I may find somewhat pleasant. In this specific example, it can be something simple such as making a morning playlist or a favourite drink to start a day that helps make your resolutions yours, and work. Be creative!
Now that's all for some tips in keeping New Year’s resolutions, or really, any resolutions - New Year’s or not; it’s always a challenge! Know that you’re definitely not alone if you’re having a hard time keeping up with your New Year’s resolutions this year, or if you feel discouraged about them. It’s normal, but sometimes, it just takes a simple step or two to bring it back into fruition.
Best of luck!
Sources
https://www.forbes.com/sites/kathycaprino/2019/12/21/the-top-3-reasons-new-years-resolutions-fail-and-how-yours-can-succeed/?sh=41c15f956992
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/new-years-resolution-janine-hubbard-1.5412777#:~:text=in%206%20weeks.-,Here's%20how%20you%20can%20beat%20the%20odds,setting%20ourselves%20up%20for%20failure.