How to Make (and Keep) a New Year's Resolution(ˌrezəˈlo͞oSHən)

How to Make (and Keep) a New Year’s Resolution(ˌrezəˈlo͞oSHən)

By Jen A. Miller(ˈmilər)

Pick the Right Resolution

You’ll give yourself your best shot(SHät) at success if you set a goal(gōl) that’s doable(ˈdo͞oəbəl) — and meaningful too.

According to the time management(ˈmanijmənt) firm FranklinCovey(ˈkəvē), one third of resolutioners don’t make it past the end of January(ˈjanyo͞oˌerē).

A lot of these resolutions fail because they’re not the right resolutions. And a resolution may be wrong for one of three main reasons:

It’s a resolution created based on what someone else (or society(səˈsīətē)) is telling you to change.

It’s too vague(vāg).

You don’t have a realistic(ˌrēəˈlistik) plan for achieving your resolution.

Your goals should be smart — and SMART. That’s an acronym(ˈakrəˌnim) coined(koin) in the journal(ˈjərnl) Management Review in 1981 for specific(spəˈsifik), measurable(ˈmeZH(ə)rəbəl), achievable, relevant(ˈreləvənt) and time-bound. It may work for management, but it can also work in setting your resolutions, too.

Specific. Your resolution should be absolutely(ˌabsəˈlo͞otlē) clear. “Making a concrete goal is really important rather than just vaguely(ˈvāglē) saying ‘I want to lose(lo͞oz) weight.’ You want to have a goal: How much weight do you want to lose and at what time interval(ˈintərvəl)?”

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Measurable. This may seem obvious(ˈäbvēəs) if your goal is a fitness(ˈfitnis) or weight(wāt) loss(läs,lôs) related(riˈlātid) one, but it’s also important if you’re trying to cut back on something, too. If, for example, you want to stop biting your nails(nāl), take pictures of your nails over time so you can track your progress in how those nails grow back out…

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Achievable. This doesn’t mean that you can’t have big stretch(streCH) goals. But trying to take too big a step(step) too fast can leave you frustrated(ˈfrəsˌtrātid), or affect other areas(ˈe(ə)rēə) of your life to the point that your resolution takes over your life — and both you and your friends and family(ˈfam(ə)lē) flail(flāl). So, for example, resolving(-ˈzôlv,riˈzälv) to save enough(iˈnəf) money to retire(riˈtīr) in five years when you’re 30 years old is probably not realistic, but saving an extra(ˈekstrə) $100 a month may be.

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Relevant(ˈreləvənt). Is this a goal that really matters to you, and are you making it for the right reasons?

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Time-bound. Like “achievable,” the timeline toward reaching your goal should be realistic, too. That means giving yourself enough time to do it with lots of smaller intermediate(ˌintərˈmēdē-it) goals set up along the way.

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https://www.nytimes.com/guides/smarterliving/resolution-ideas