I read a good piece in Fast Company with suggestions from people who are successful with their New Year’s resolutions. The first suggestion was near to my heart: Their resolutions revolve around small changes.
New Year’s resolutions tend to fail because we take on too many goals at once, or goals that are too big. That’s why I advocate breaking down large goals into small pieces and working on one at a time for the 21 days it takes to create a habit.
The other suggestions shared in the Fast Company piece:
- Write down the resolution every day.
- Have a strong “why”. One interviewee said she keeps her New Year’s resolutions when her “why” (why she is doing this) is stronger than her “why not”. She identifies potential barriers and plans ways to overcome them before they happen.
- Seek accountability. One interviewee meets every Monday with a group of seven other women.
- Make failure difficult. One interviewee made a resolution in 2016 to exercise more and made good on her promise by getting a dog. “…Now I’m pretty much forced to take a 20-30 minute walk at least twice a day,” she said.
What is your plan for making new habits that stick? Please join the conversation with your comments…
All the best,
David