While New Year’s resolutions are exciting to plan, about 80% of the people who make them give up by February. If you’re determined to be part of the 20% that follows through and wondering how to make your New Year’s resolutions stick, dive into the psychology behind making resolutions with Compass Self Storage.
We’ll break down what effectively setting New Year’s resolutions looks like, what realistic New Year’s resolutions are, and some common and uncommon tips for achieving your goals.
Why Do New Year’s Resolutions Fail?
Think about the goal of losing 40 pounds by the end of the year. Depending on factors like your age, weight, sex, and activity levels, losing one pound of fat takes about a week—that means losing 40 pounds could take you until November. Between birthdays, summer cookouts, and the many treats of the holiday season, a 40-week goal can easily be thrown off if you don’t have a strategy.
Planning New Year’s resolutions and giving them up as the year goes on is an example of prospective memory. You use prospective memory when you intend to accomplish a psychological or physical act in the future, like taking your dog for a walk after work or buying groceries over the weekend.
Successful prospective memory looks like brushing your teeth or filling your tank with gas, but it has limitations for long-term goals like resolutions. If you have executive functioning challenges, such as stress and anxiety from a busy schedule, it can weaken your prospective memory, causing you to lose sight of New Year’s resolutions in your daily life.
Setting New Year’s Resolutions
Your prospective memory thrives on specifics, and while setting New Year’s resolutions like exercising consistently or eating healthier may seem like reasonable goals, they’re often too vague for your brain to latch onto. Without a structured plan behind them, it’s easy to lose steam or feel overwhelmed.
Instead of having a pie-in-the-sky mindset, make realistic New Year’s resolutions with the SMART goal technique.
What Are SMART Goals?
A SMART goal, or in this case, a SMART New Year’s resolution, is based on your reality and outlines clear objectives. If your New Year’s resolution is to run more often, that isn’t a SMART goal, especially if you didn’t run at all the previous year. You could run once in the new year and say you’ve accomplished your resolution! No matter what your resolutions may be, here’s how to make them SMART.
S—Specific
The brain thrives on information whether you consider yourself a type A or type B person. Intentional goal-setting is associated with benefits like higher motivation, confidence, and autonomy. The more specific your goal, the more information and motivation your brain receives.
M—Measurable
From beating levels in a video game to tracking your daily steps, achieving goals causes your brain to release a reward chemical called dopamine. When your dopamine levels rise, you feel more motivated, satisfied, and possibly more productive. Breaking down your resolution into measurable steps can help you stay committed to your goals, even on challenging days.
A—Achievable
Ask yourself if your New Year’s resolutions are achievable. Some goals, like decluttering your spare room, are achievable within a year, while others, like building a house, may be more long term, depending on your financial situation. Remember, achievable New Year’s resolutions are realistic New Year’s resolutions!
R—Relevant
Are your New Year’s resolutions relevant to your values and personality? Running a marathon by the end of the year may seem like an exciting goal, but if you prefer the indoors and don’t particularly enjoy running, consider a fitness resolution more in line with your lifestyle. You can make an exercise-related New Year’s resolution by taking up yoga or creating an at-home gym.
T—Time-Bound
Your New Year’s resolutions should be time-bound, and December 31 of the new year doesn’t count as a deadline. A time-bound New Year’s resolution may look like breaking your goal of a healthier lifestyle down into quarters like this:
- By March, I will only eat fast food once a month.
- By June, I will make at least four home-cooked meals a week.
- By September, I will have five to six healthy meals I can make at home.
- By December, most of my meals will include lean protein, fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.
How To Keep New Year’s Resolutions
Making your New Year’s resolutions SMART is a solid foundation for the next 12 months, but you can do even more to stay on track. We’ve gathered a few helpful tips for keeping New Year’s resolutions.
Use Action Triggers
As the new year ramps up and we get busy, it’s easy to fall into the trap of “out of sight, out of mind.” Give yourself action triggers to stay on top of your goals.
If your resolution is related to fitness, keep your running shoes or dumbbells somewhere you’ll often see them, like by your front door or the couch, to trigger your brain. You may even find yourself naturally grabbing the weights to work out while you watch TV.
Have an Accountability Partner
An accountability partner is someone who supports you as you take on your journey for the new year, whether it’s reminding you to hit the gym during the weekend or motivating you to maintain the budget you’ve set to save money. In addition to helping you stick to your New Year’s resolutions, an accountability partner often provides the benefit of spending time with a friend, family member, or coworker, which may be another resolution you set for the year.
Create a Goal-Friendly Environment
Earlier, we discussed how stress and anxiety can negatively impact your prospective memory. In addition to a busy work schedule or packed social calendar, a cluttered living space can cause unnecessary stress and drain your motivation.
Decluttering your house or apartment may not be one of your resolutions for the new year. Still, an organized home provides any New Year’s resolution with a clean slate to focus on goals like working out, making nutritious meals, or spending time with loved ones.
Set Yourself Up for Success in the New Year With Compass Self Storage
No matter what realistic New Year’s resolutions you make, we want you to stick to them. If you need help organizing your house or apartment as you prepare for the new year, Compass Self Storage offers a wide range of storage unit sizes and features to help you clear space for your resolutions.
Tuck away bedroom furniture to convert your guest room into an at-home music studio, or buy an RV for your cross-country travels and store it in one of our vehicle storage parking spaces between adventures. If you need additional room in the new year, we have the perfect storage solution at an affordable monthly rate.
Visit a Compass Self Storage facility near you and find your convenient, affordable storage unit for the new year today.
