It turns out that most of us are quick to abandon the resolutions we made so confidently around the New Year. A glass of champagne makes us feel like we can do something meaningful — save more, spend less, eat healthier, or exercise more.
But Janina Steinmetz, a marketing professor at the Bayes Business School at City, University of London, says those grand plans often fizzle out within a few weeks after the holiday.
But we’ve told friends and family our good intentions. Do we have to admit defeat already? Professor Steinmetz says the first step is understanding why those promises go unkept. That understanding makes it easier to follow through next time.
Steps to Achieve Plans We Almost Forgot
The expert suggests starting by reminding the friends and family who heard your New Year’s promises about your plans — and doing it in a way that makes any setbacks clear to them and to you. That clarity can provide motivation to move forward.
Fulfilling promises often requires time and money, Science Alert notes. For example, getting in shape takes time and sometimes money, like a gym membership. A lack of funds feels like something outside your control. So if money is the real barrier, the person hasn’t solved that problem.
A lack of time, on the other hand, is a different story. Unlike a shortage of money, time can be managed. Going forward, allocate time more carefully.
“Analyze your schedule and make conscious decisions about how to allocate time to achieve your goals, such as planning gym sessions or setting aside time to prepare healthy meals. This will help motivate new attempts, and you won’t fall victim to a hectic schedule,” explained Professor Steinmetz.
Last year her team studied how a lack of time leads to failure. They found that people can regain control over their time by focusing not on its absence but on actively allocating it (“allocating time”).
As a result, study participants felt more capable of tackling future goals. The phrase “allocate time” signals control over your schedule. By contrast, saying “I didn’t have time” implies your schedule was out of your control, which makes future goal achievement feel unlikely.
Make Room for Joy in Your Plans
Another reason many people struggle to stick to their New Year’s resolutions is that they set overly ambitious goals or overlook that pleasure helps sustain us while pursuing goals.
In other words, it’s not enough to have a goal. It’s also important to enjoy the process and believe you can achieve what you planned at your New Year’s celebration.
Without an element of joy and fun, it’s hard to see things through to the end, even when you really want to. “So try to come up with ways to make achieving your goals more enjoyable, and remind yourself that you are capable of doing it,” the expert advised.
While forming healthy habits right after a wild night of partying and overeating may seem paradoxical, research shows that such a “fresh start” can be productive. And the first page of a fresh calendar is a great place to begin.
Photo: pexels.com
