With the start of the new year, many people make resolutions to change their life for the better. Most people aim to achieve a lot of the same goals but, don't make it past the first two months. So here are a few ways to help keep those goals on track.
Top 10 New Years Resolutions:
Recommended for you
1. Stay Fit and Healthy
2. Lose Weight
3. Enjoy Life to the Fullest
4. Spend Less, Save More
5. Spend More Time with Friends and Family
6. Get Organized
7. No Resolution
8. Learn Something New / Get a New Hobby
9. Travel More
10. Read More
Increasing Your Odds
According to a study done by The University of Scranton, the younger you are the better odds you have of achieving your resolution. Explicitly stating your goal also makes you 10x more likely to complete it than those who did not explicitly state their goal. Writing this resolution down on paper will give you a moment of intensity to look back on when it seems unachievable.
Be Specific with Goals
Being vague will get you nowhere so come up with a list of visible or achievable steps along the way to score your progress and keep on top of your end goal. Break the year-long goal into smaller week-long goals that can be tracked and planned with much more ease.
Treat Willpower as a Muscle
Marvin D. Seppala, M.D. , chief medical officer at Hazelden, a well-known addiction treatment center suggests that willpower should be thought of and trained as a muscle, rather than a steady resolve. Just like any other muscle, the more this "muscle" is used the stronger it becomes.
Be Nicer than Normal
A Harvard University study tested this theory on a group of 80 people. Each person was given a dollar, half of them were told to keep it, while the other half donated it to charity. A few minutes later the participants were asked to hold a five-pound weight for as long as possible. The group who donated were able to hold the weight for significantly longer on average than the group who kept the dollar for themselves. Doing something good can increase our feeling of personal power, making us better at completing an uncomfortable task.
Achieving a New Years Resolution is a marathon, not a sprint, so be sure to pace yourself. The key to success is setting short-term, specific goals and motivating yourself along the way. Good Luck!
