How to Keep Your New Year’s Resolution

We all know how it goes: two weeks into January and you’re already hitting the snooze button on your New Year’s resolution. It’s always easy to set goals but much harder to keep them! Read our tips and tricks on how to stay strong, discipline yourself, and follow through in achieving the toughest of New Year’s resolutions:

Plan ahead. Don’t make your resolution in the final minutes of December. Outline how exactly you intend to approach this goal and anticipate the upcoming challenge.

Make it for you. Avoid striving for anything suggested by friends or family. Be sure that it is something that would truly benefit YOUR life and if it is, then go for it!

Be specific. Setting a specific goal will give you more incentive and structure, for example saying “I want to lose weight” is a proposal much more likely to fall through rather than a set strategy: “I will go to the gym Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, before work at 7am”.

Be realistic. Don’t set yourself up for failure right out of the gate. Pick something that is realistically achievable and as a result will be much easier to keep. The closer the end destination seems, the easier it will be for you to be persistent and keep going.

Reward yourself. Break up the process into steps and celebrate every success when you complete each milestone. You deserve it!

Make it routine. If it is something that can be automatically integrated into your daily routine it will be easier to become accustomed to as part of your lifestyle.

Don’t Make Excuses. Remember the reason you made this resolution in the first place and commit to it. It won’t happen overnight so be patient, take it one day at a time, and push your limits.

Tell your friends and family. Most people need an extra cheerleader and support system for encouragement. Gather up the positive enforcers for the motivation, you will most definitely need them!

Stay positive! Slipping is part of the process so don’t get discouraged the moment you begin to feel uncomfortable. Be prepared to make tradeoffs, take on the challenge of change, and adapt with an optimistic outlook.

When heading into the new year, sustain your willpower and keep in mind our tips in order to improve your life and achieve your goals! Best of luck!