One Month Down, Eleven More to Go. Are You Still Keeping Your New Year’s Resolutions?

According to University of Scranton research reported in Forbes Magazine, only 8% of people who make New Year’s Resolutions actually achieve their goals. (http://www.forbes.com/sites/dandiamond/2013/01/01/just-8-of-people-achieve-their-new-years-resolutions-heres-how-they-did-it/),

What about you? Still going strong?

So why is that? Why do so many people make resolutions only to have them become irrelevant within a month’s time?

Perhaps it is the following:

· The resolutions are simply too aggressive and rigorous to maintain, and the end result, rather than smaller baby-steps, is what’s kept in sight. Losing 50 pounds is a big deal. Taking off 1.5 pounds per week, not so bad. But since most of us are very results-driven we focus on the end outcome and well, it’s so far in the distance that we fail.

· We don’t have anyone helping us along. We make resolutions, keep them private and then have to be awfully self-motivated to see them through. Having a resolution “buddy” to provide encouragement and keep you on the path to whatever it is you set out to accomplish is a tactic that can help lead to success.

· The process is tough and the short-term gains are pretty ephemeral. Once again looking at the end result can really diminish motivation since there are many trials along the way. Make it a point to reward yourself for the small successes and you just may find that it is easier to keep going.

But you know what? It is entirely okay to start over. No one ever said that you can’t start (or re-start) your resolutions in February! So take the advice above, restart your resolutions and this time you will have a better shot at success.