There’s always an aura of optimism during the first days of a new year. It feels like starting with a clean slate and putting aside what happened in the previous year, good or bad. Though many will admit that keeping new year’s resolutions has been tough these past two years, there are still those that find ways to be committed to the cause.
Why Do We Make New Year’s Resolutions?
People will tell you different reasons why they want to have new year’s resolutions. The most common reasons being intention and responsibility. Maybe there were things in the past year that people realized made them happier and saw it as something to work towards. Anything that contributes to your overall happiness can always be a good thing. Some also see the impact they have on others. This is especially true when it comes to self-improvement and how it affects relationships with others. Whether their family, friends or community, people seek to make resolutions to better themselves and their connections.
Here are some ways they can stay committed to their resolutions.
Stay Grounded And Realistic
It’s tempting to set big lofty goals during the start of the year. You’re full of energy and motivation to start your goals that you aim big. However, the surest way to lose your drive is if you make your goal seem unattainable. For instance, when people want to make healthier lifestyle choices, they think avoiding favorite foods is a good way to do it. After all, it’s all about sacrifice. However, this can also set people up to fail by depriving them of their favorite things. Instead of cutting it off all at once, a gradual reduction might be better. It makes health goals more attainable and feels like a natural progression into the healthy lifestyle that you want.
Don’t forget to also celebrate your successes! Once you developed brand new habits from your new year’s resolution, you can go out and treat yourself. You might also surprise yourself at how your better choices will contradict the resolution you made. Eating better and making healthier life choices? You might just reward yourself with nicer clothes or a trip to the spa.
Be A Few Steps Forward
Whether short or long term, new year’s resolutions are commitments. Whatever you choose to do, it’s best to always plan ahead. Making spontaneous decisions on what you want to do can get a little chaotic. It can be as simple as keeping a small list of things you want to achieve to keep your motivations focused. Post your list close by so you can take quick peeks at it when you need to feel the resolve. You may also want to install some productivity or focus apps that can help you reach your goal!
Earlier we said that it is important to celebrate the success from your journey to self-improvement. Indeed, one thing to remember is that no victory is too small to be proud of. When you keep track of each small success, they can accumulate into something larger that shows how far you’ve come. This is especially true if you’re on pace towards a long-term goal. Short term goals are easier to achieve and each one is a step towards loftier ambitions. Visualizing your progress can help you stay on track and remain as driven as you were when you started.
Keep Yourself Committed and Keep Trying
If keeping new year’s resolutions were easy, we’d all not stress over making them. Occasionally, you might get sidetracked or slip up in completing your resolutions. Instead of lamenting the days you didn’t achieve anything, remember that you can always try again. As the cliche goes, taking it one day at a time is the best approach. Sometimes, doing the minimum is just enough and can keep you committed to your resolutions.
Experts talk about forming habits in 21 days and six months for it to become part of your personality. What both these concepts tell us is that real change does not happen overnight. But even the smallest acts of staying consistent will help people form new habits and enact real lifestyle changes. If you feel drained in committing to your new year’s resolutions, that’s perfectly fine! Give yourself a day to refocus, recommit and get yourself back on track. Don’t keep your resolution a secret. Tell friends and family members who will be there to support your resolve to change yourself for the better or improve your health. The best-case scenario is to find a buddy who shares your New Year’s resolution and motivate each other.
Inspiration is Everywhere
Making new year’s resolutions is a highly personal endeavor. There’s no one size fits all solution because we are starting from different places in our journey. What some see as an optimal approach may not be a feasible one for others. But taking that first step in wanting to make changes is an all important one. Remember that any time you make a conscious effort towards your improvement – regardless of how minimal they feel – is not a day wasted.
It’s hard to say what this new year will bring as we all remain cautious of the future. However, we can very much tackle it as different people, especially as ones we want to commit ourselves to be.
