Every January, similar patterns emerge. The parking lot at the gym suddenly becomes very full, the sales of self-help books rise about 30%, and we all tell ourselves, ‘This year I’m going to stick with it.’
The tradition of making New Year resolutions is thousands of years old, dating back to the Babylonians, who celebrated the new year in the spring with a twelve-day festival. The practice moved to January 1st as a result of the Roman new year celebration, at which time they would make sacrifices to the god Janus, of January, give gifts, and make promises to one another, creating the essence of a new year resolution: a promise. In other cultures, the new year was a time of renewal and reflection. Knights would renew their vows of loyalty at the new year, and in the United States it was long known as a time to return borrowed tools to neighbors.
In addition to New Year’s Day being a big day for New Year’s resolutions, the second Friday is an almost equally important day in the lives of such goals. It is the time at which most people who had big aspirations for the year ahead lose motivation and quit. The tendency to call off resolutions on this day is such a common phenomenon that the second Friday of January has been aptly named Quitting Day.
While individuals had big aspirations for the year underneath fireworks, surrounded by friends and family that were celebrating, those grandiose and sometimes meaningless promises mean less as we go back to our normal lives. There are many factors that play into achieving our goals and keeping our resolutions. Here are 5 things you can do to manipulate those factors in your favor.
- Choose your resolution carefully.
When considering how you want to improve yourself or your life in the coming year, be realistic in finding a goal you will still care about six months from now. Your resolution should be something that is meaningful to you; it should connect to one of your core values. For example, find categories that are important to you as a person, like family, education, creativity, religion, etcetera. Picking a resolution that falls into one of these categories is crucial for completion, which will quickly be realized as you get back into your normal routine. For the resolution to work, it must be meaningful to you.
- Write it down.
People who write down their goals are 42% more likely to stick with them. Not only should you write it down, but you should also write it on your mirror, on your phone, on your planner, and on a piece of paper that you stick on your wall. After you write the overarching goal, make a plan to accomplish it, and write the steps in your calendar. If it is a daily goal, carve out a time each day to do it, and send yourself reminders. If it is a long-term goal, set deadlines and adhere to them. The more you write it down, the harder it will be to forget it.
- Find an accountability buddy.
Tell someone about your goal or, better yet, find someone who has the same goal as you and hold each other accountable for your progress. Not only is it much easier to get up in the morning to, for example, go on a run, when there is someone counting on you to be there, but you’ll have company and someone to relate to in your endeavors. Make a plan to work on the resolution together, or, if it is the kind of goal that is more of a personal journey, agree to check in on each other and ask about progress. Knowing you have to report to someone is a fantastic reason to get something done.
- Re-evaluate your resolution.
Don’t be afraid to adjust your goal if needed. Your circumstances on January 1st may be drastically different on December 31st, and as you go through different periods in your life, your goals may need to be adjusted to become more manageable. Not only will your circumstances change, but your interests will change as well. As long as you make sure that how you adjust your goals aligns with your hopes for your outcome of improvement, it’s an excellent idea to re-evaluate your resolution from time to time.
- Motivation vs. Discipline.
You will not always be motivated. It’s the simple truth of life. You’ll still want the end result, but the sacrifices that stand in your way will make you feel as if it is not worth it anymore. You’ll fall out of habit. You’ll give up. To combat lack of motivation, you must become acquainted with discipline. You have to convince yourself to do it despite that you don’t want to. You have to do it, especially on the days when you don’t want to. Every time you put it off, you have a bigger reason to stop altogether: you’re not committed enough.
This year on the second Friday of January, will you be one of the many that walk away from their resolutions, or will you be one of the few on December 31st that feels accomplished and satisfied with their hard work?