Keeping Resolutions

It’s not new. I read somewhere that over 4,000 years ago Babylonians tried to start the New Year “fresh” by repaying debts and returning borrowed items. And it certainly hasn’t stopped. We all do it sometime or other – make New Year’s Resolutions, or NYRs. And many times we fail to keep them; forty to fifty percent of us, in fact. Although after two months some sixty-three percent of us are still keeping our resolutions.

One reason we fail to keep our NYRs is that we think they’re a good idea, but we don’t think it through and are not really committed to it. Hopefully, your resolution wasn’t last second and not of the “I’ll never do that again” variety.

But let’s talk about how to really keep our NYRs now that you’ve made them and are trying hard to stick with it. Here are a few ideas:

• Start with a realistic goal. Don’t be too ambitious. Keep it to one or two resolutions. You can always add more as you meet your goals.

• Have a strong initial commitment to make a change.

• Supplement your annual resolution with near-term goals. In fact, set yourself up for early success with easy to meet near-term goals. This will provide added incentive.

• Fail to plan, plan to fail. Have coping strategies to deal with problems that will come up.

• You’re going to slip up. Don’t let it undo everything. Don’t beat yourself up. Keep trying.

• Keep track of your progress. The more monitoring you do and feedback you get, the better you will do.

• These are a few simple ideas and strategies that can help you stay focused and meet the goals you are committed to. Many goals fall into the category of lifestyle change, so just keep trying. As they say - learn it, love it, live it.

John Holt
Cornerstone Psychological Services
01-13-2009