New Year's Resolutions

What New Year's resolutions did you make?
Are you having a hard time keeping them?
If so, here are some tips on how to get back on track....and stay there! Most people have made New Year's resolutions at some stage in their life, even if as an arbitrary, last-minute decision before the clock strikes 12 midnight, to pay lip-service to tradition. Sound familiar? The truth is, while many people like the idea of turning over a new leaf and improving their life, it's not that easy to put into practice. Studies show that four out of five people who make New Year's resolutions break them after a couple of months!

The most common New Year's resolutions include spending more time with family and friends, getting into shape, losing weight, quitting smoking, enjoying life more, quitting drinking, getting out of debt, learning something new, helping others, and getting organized. Why are so many of these resolutions broken?

Experts give the reasons why. One explanation is that too many of us make far-reaching resolutions which are then hard to achieve. Resolutions such as "I am never going to eat chocolate again" or "I am going to work out two hours a day for the next six months" are too unrealistic. "Small and tangible goals work best," says Lisa Young, an American nutritionist.

Secondly, a resolution can only be successful when we are committed to making a change and feel confident we can carry it through. A half-hearted resolution to get more sleep is bound to fail.

Thirdly, our resolutions are too often based on stopping a negative behavior rather than moving towards a positive goal. When we commit to stopping a behavior that we enjoy, but know is bad for us, we can feel locked in. Rhonda F. Walters, a Change Management expert, says she hears many of her clients say, "If I do not make my goal, I will be a failure." This fear of failure to keep our commitments right away causes us to give up trying. Walters stipulates that we should avoid selecting undesirable resolutions in favor of positive ones that we really want to do, and should break them down into short-term goals over a period of time.

Alan Marlatt, an addiction specialist, warns against blaming ourselves when we fail to stick to our resolutions. Instead, we need to look at the obstacles that were in the way and try to do better next time. Studies indicate that successful resolutions are usually a process with periodic setbacks, rather than a one-time effort to create new habits. "We were not born with the innate ability to make accurate estimations," says Walters. "It takes practice and perseverance." According to studies, only 40 percent of people who successfully achieved their top resolution did it on the first attempt. The rest made multiple tries, with 17 percent finally succeeding after at least six attempts.

All experts agree that our resolutions should be written down, as well as how and when we plan to implement them. In doing so, we should make them positive, such as "I will live a healthy lifestyle" rather than "I will lose weight." And reminders about our resolutions are a useful way to keep us on track. This can be done by placing notes on the refrigerator, a notice board, or above our bed.

Finally, Marlatt emphasizes the importance of giving ourselves credit when we do make progress in sticking to our resolutions. This can be as simple as doing something we enjoy, buying ourselves something new, or absolving ourselves from a chore we hate to do. This helps motivate us to keep at it!