New Year’s resolutions, everyone knows them, everyone has them or had them at least once. Who does not know it, either you yourself or your friends have once again planned something for the new year, which they absolutely want to implement. In January, the gyms are once again overcrowded and you have to wait until February until you can finally train normally again because then most have already thrown their resolutions overboard. The most typical New Year’s resolutions actually start exactly with this one, to do more sports.
Also, at the top of the list to stop smoking, eat healthier, be less on social media, and spend more time with family, travel more, save more money and and and. But why are there even the typical New Year’s resolutions that somehow everyone makes for themselves? Why does everyone strive for the same for the new year? Is it still the good resolution behind it or simply the habit or the group pressure to make these thoughts at the turn of the year? How about setting new goals far away from weight loss, smoking, and money?
A great goal for the new year would be, for example, to live more sustainable and to do without plastic when shopping by simply using your own bags and sacks. We’ll clear up New Year’s resolutions here and explain why they almost never work.
When is the right time to set and work on new goals?
Setting personal goals and having goals for life is all well and good, but aren’t there other goals than being more athletic and having more money and why does that always have to happen with a new year? You just put off the idea of changing something until the new year knocks on the door instead of changing something right away. To really change something in your life you don’t need a new year, even that won’t change anything. The days are still the same, there is just a different number on the date display of the cell phone or in the calendar.
Of course, it is good to look for a starting point for change, but then let’s just start today! The first step towards change is the most important and the chances to really follow through with something increase if you start 72 hours after you made a resolution. To wait until New Year’s Eve with your resolutions reduces the chance to really tackle the good resolution in the new year.
Changes do not work from one day to the next anyway and so you can also start the new year much more relaxed instead of already having five resolutions in your head that all have to be fulfilled. How should one start there nice into the next year? If you simply start working directly on your desires and aspirations, you go straight into the new year with progress and can celebrate it directly. The new year often brings enough changes with it that you often don’t even have the head for it to actively take care of any New Year’s resolutions.
But why do our New Year’s resolutions often not work?
Most resolutions are formulated negatively and thus have negative connotations. One restricts oneself and suppresses something that one has otherwise always done. Often, exactly the opposite of what was actually desired happens in the end. Slowly giving up smoking, for example, works much better than saying “That’s it!” from one day to the next. At some point, there comes a time at a party or after a stressful day at work when you just can’t resist and fall back into old habits. However, if you slowly break the old habit, the chances are much higher that this will also lead to lasting changes.
In addition, resolutions are rarely formulated as a concrete goal, but rather as an idea or wish. Instead of saying “I want to lose weight,” it’s better to set concrete goals and steps, starting with an exercise plan and perhaps a partner who can motivate you and with whom you can implement your plan together. The right goal should then be, for example, “next month I want to weigh two kilos less”. After fulfilling this goal, the next one will follow and so you can fulfill your desire to lose weight step by step. Setting and achieving goals requires some practice, but with the right goal formulation, anything is possible.
Most people also give up far too quickly on their resolutions. It takes at least 30 days to get used to something and integrate it automatically into everyday life. Perseverance is the key to success. It can help to visualize your goal exactly. Write down your goal or buy a bikini in your desired size that you want to wear on the beach next summer. In this way, you associate your goal with something positive and see yourself happy on the beach with your new bikini.
Rethink resolutions instead of skipping them
We don’t want to take away your motivation and badmouth your New Year’s resolutions, but we want to ask you to reconsider them. Are they formulated in such a way that you can implement them concretely?
Do I really have the interest to change something and to put the goal into practice? Formulate your resolutions as concretely as possible, find a friend with whom you can share them, and start right now with the first step because it doesn’t take a new year to be happy, it just takes the will to change something. Think about what you really want to change and why. What is behind your resolutions and goals and how can you achieve them? A successful new year can be easier than you think with the right motivation to achieve goals. You have to find your personal goals that you care about and then it’s not that difficult to implement good resolutions.
Join us and simply fulfill your wishes and goals throughout the year instead of waiting for next year like everyone else. Good New Year’s resolutions are not needed, we make them year-round goals and wishes with which we achieve success. Happy New Year!
