NEW YEAR, NEW RESOLUTIONS!

By John Sodipo

It can be discouraging when your list of New Year’s Resolutions is as long as your holiday shopping list. And not being able to keep your resolutions by February, March or even worse late January and having to make these same resolutions the following year can be disheartening. New Year’s resolutions are a bit like babies, they’re fun to make but extremely difficult to maintain.

However, it is important to remember that the New Year isn’t meant to serve as a catalyst for sweeping character changes. It is a time for people to reflect on their past year’s behavior and promise to make positive lifestyle changes. 

Each January, quite a lot of people commonly resolve to either losing weight, managing debt/saving money, getting a better job, getting fit/eating right, getting a better education, drinking less alcohol/quit smoking, reducing stress overall and/or at work, take a trip and volunteering to help others but only a few people actually make good on these resolutions. While about 75% of people stick to their goals for at least a week, less than half are still on target six months later.



“Setting small, attainable goals throughout the year, instead of a singular, overwhelming goal on January 1 can help you reach whatever it is you strive for,” says psychologist Lynn Bufka, PhD. “Remember, it is not the extent of the change that matters, but rather the act of recognizing that lifestyle change is important and working toward it, one step at a time.” By making your resolutions realistic, there is a greater chance that you will keep them throughout the year, incorporating healthy behavior into your everyday life. Here are some tips when thinking about a News Year’s resolution:

Start small: Don't make a short list of huge goals, make a list with many smaller goals. Break down larger goals into smaller actions. Think of the smaller habits that turn into big problems when not addressed. Try to be realistic and adjust any goals that may be too hard to tackle and make resolutions that you think you can keep. If, for example your aim is to save more from your N19,800 monthly allawee, you can resolve to spend less on food and drink consumptions, exploit cheaper alternative routes and modes of transportation to your PPA and other places, spend less on shopping and hangouts, and then gradually spend on needs rather than wants. Before you know it, you have saved up more by achieving your smaller resolutions. In the long run, you’ll be much more likely to maintain saving more as you've formed a new lifestyle pattern instead of a deprivation/punishment regime.

Develop a time-activated plan under each goal and change one behavior at a time: Unhealthy behaviors develop over the course of time. Thus, replacing unhealthy behaviors with healthy ones requires time. Don’t get overwhelmed and think that you have to reassess everything in your life. Instead, work toward changing one thing at a time. For the top three goals you listed, make a detailed, achievable plan. For example, for losing weight, ask yourself how you will do that. Will you stop eating carbs? Cut calories? Exercise three times a week for 20 minutes at a time?

Start following your plan immediately and create accountability: Don't wait for inspiration to strike. The best thing to do is start on January 1 and start tracking your progress. Set up dates to share your experiences with family, friends or a mentor for evaluation. This helps you to stay focused and evaluates methods for improvement. It's even better if you find someone who has the same resolution.
Remind yourself about your goals and focus on the process rather than the end goal: For every day on your calendar or schedule, write down what you will do for that day, what time you will do it, and don't forget to actually do it, no matter how busy you are. They're called challenging for a reason! Take each step one at a time and be happy with your progress. The only way you'll get to where you want to go is to complete every small step along the way, checking it off with pride as you accomplish each step.

Don’t beat yourself up: Perfection is unattainable. Remember that minor missteps when reaching your goals are completely normal and okay. Everyone has ups and downs; resolve to recover from your mistakes and get back on track. When you fall off track with your resolution, look beyond "I can't" and start substituting this with "I can" and "I am", identify your excuses for not going through with parts of your goal, identify your self-defeating behaviors and deal with them and stop blaming other people or circumstances for not achieving your goals, then use the next Monday as the day to recommit. If you have a weekly chance to get back on track with your New Year's Resolution, you'll have a greater chance of success.

Ask for support: Accepting help from those who care about you and will listen strengthens your resilience and ability to manage stress caused by your resolution. Whoever you've chosen to help you, be it family, friends, a life coach, therapist, or someone else, lean on them to support you through times of weakness, when you feel overwhelmed or unable to meet your goals on your own or when you need a booster to get back on track. Don't expect to do this completely alone; look for other people's advice, ideas and feedback to help you keep going.
Accept that your enthusiasm will wane over time: It can be hard to maintain your motivation and dedication to making a change in your life when you can't see immediate results for your efforts. At each low point, have faith that persisting and being consistent in reaching your goal will pay off in the long run.