6 Reasons Why New Year Resolutions Don’t Work
I used to hate going to the office gym in January when I worked for my former company.
From February through December, the gym was mostly a ghost town when I would go during my lunch hour every Monday through Friday, save for one or two people who were as consistent as I was.
I never had a problem securing my favorite treadmill or dealt with annoying distractions.
But come January, all that changed.
People I’d never seen in there before started showing up and my favorite machine was always taken. The TV blaring loudly.
I couldn’t stand it.
My peaceful workday getaway became dreadful and annoying.
But I knew come February, things would revert back to the way they stayed 90% of the year.
Why?
Because the gym in January is notorious for being overcrowded with people who made fitness and weight loss their new year resolution.
And according to U.S. News and World Report, the failure rate of new years resolutions is 80%, with people losing their resolve by mid-February, if not sooner.
If you’ve ever made a new year resolution you failed to keep, fear not.
The problem isn’t you, it’s the system.
Here are six reasons why new year resolutions don’t work.
Resolutions are often unreasonable.
I’m betting you lost count how many times you heard things like, “I’m quitting drinking this year” or “I’m going to lose weight this year” etc.
Chances are, if you scroll through social media, you’ll likely see your friends and family proclaiming some of these same retorts.
Proclamations of extreme life changes before they’ve actually occurred tend to fall flat.
The person doing the proclaiming has good intentions, but without a real plan, nothing will change.
After all, these extreme resolutions tend to come from those who struggle with the self-discipline and resolve to actually improve.
And making broad statements such as “I’m quitting smoking in 2022” isn’t getting you any closer to actually achieving what you’re saying you’re going to do.
You need a plan of action.
Related:
- Dream Year
- Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself: How to Lose Your Mind and Create a New One
- How to Set Goals and Achieve Them
Announced resolutions almost always fail.
It’s been proven your chances of success are much lower when you announce your resolution/goal/plan.
When you post on Facebook you’re going on a diet, you’ll likely receive loads of encouraging comments that trick your brain into thinking success has already been achieved, and you’ll be less likely to put the work in behind the scenes.
Your brain recognizes you’ve already received the praises, so it’s less likely that it’s going to want to put in the actual work to achieve the desired result.
In order to receive success publicly, you have to receive it privately, first.
We’re tricked into making bold declarations in advance because we just want to skip to the public success of our plan, but it doesn’t work that way.
Don’t jinx yourself by making your plans public before you’ve received success in private.
Related:
- 11 Habits that Make You Unhappy
- 5 Things You Must Let Go of to Achieve Success
- The 15 Invaluable Laws of Growth: Live them and Reach Your Full Potential
Resolutions aren’t defined.
Most of the common resolutions you hear are often very broad.
A person wants to quit drinking, so they resolve to quit drinking starting January 1st, the end.
That’s great, but what’s the plan?
What happens come Friday, January 17th when your friends want to meet for happy hour?
How about the Super Bowl party in February, when your favorite team is playing and you’re hyped?
Do you have a plan to succeed at not drinking in situations where all your brain knows is drinking?
Are you prepared to train your brain in new thinking patterns and not give in to temptation?
These are questions people don’t consider prior to making their new year declarations, and it’s why they end up failing.
Related:
You don’t have to wait for a new year to change.
Don’t wait for a new year, new month, new week, Monday, etc to make changes.
Every day counts.
If you don’t have the resolve to change immediately, despite the calendar date, you likely won’t have the resolve to uphold a new year resolution.
Related:
You don’t have a reason why.
What is the reason why behind your resolution?
Often times, people don’t have reasons that run deeper than the surface.
Obviously, the reason behind losing weight is to…lose weight.
But, why?
What is the underlying reason? Is it to get healthy? Have more self-confidence? Improve your lifestyle?
Your “why” is an indicator to your success (or failure).
Because if you don’t understand you must embrace making lifestyle changes to lose weight, you’ll fail.
If you can’t see or feel the positive lifestyle change exercise brings, you’ll grudgingly drag yourself to the gym for a few weeks before throwing in the towel.
Your mindset must be locked in to why you want to lose weight (or whatever your resolution is) or you’re going to fail.
Related:
- How I Made Fitness and Nutrition a Lifestyle
- High Performance Habits: How Extraordinary People Become that Way
- How I Made Walking 10,000 Steps a Day a Habit
New year resolutions are a fad.
You can expect the media to focus on new year resolutions every December and January just as you can expect to see friends and family post theirs on social media.
Nobody talks about resolutions come February, or for the rest of the year for that matter.
Those posts of your aunt tagging herself at the gym will likely dwindle into obscurity come March.
Resolutions are the epitome of wanting to do better, but not having a fleshed-out plan or the resolve to actually do so.
Related:
- How to Plan and Manage Your Time Effectively
- 6 Reasons Why People Give Up on Their Dreams
- How to Quit Anything
Resolutions vs. Goals
If resolutions are bogus, then what works?
Introducing S.M.A.R.T. goals.
The “SMART” in S.M.A.R.T. goals stands for:
S-Specific
M-Measurable
A-Achievable
R-Relevant
T-Timebound
While resolutions tend to be broad and vague, S.M.A.R.T. goals are specific and realistic.
Here’s an example:
Resolution-I want to lose weight.
S.M.A.R.T. Goal-I want to lose 20lbs by April 1st, 2020. My plan is to join Planet Fitness and start by going three times a week after work for one hour each. I will do 30 minutes of cardio and 30 minutes of strength training. Every Sunday, I will prep and pack my lunches for the upcoming work week in lieu of eating out. On Fridays, I will weigh myself and keep record of my progress in a journal.
If there’s an area of your life you’re seeking improvement in but not sure where to start, set S.M.A.R.T. goals. Get a journal or goal-setting planner and write your goal down and review it daily so it stays fresh in your mind.
For more on goal-setting, read How to Set Goals and Achieve Them.
Before You Go
Ditch the new year resolutions. They set you up for failure, and they don’t work.
Instead, set S.M.A.R.T. goals. And don’t wait until January 1st to do so!
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