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Home » Diets that Work » Johnson: You can achieve your New Years resolutions – The Times Herald

Debra B. Johnson, Guest columnist Published 9:43 a.m. ET Jan. 15, 2020

Deb Johnson

Every year between Christmas and New Years Day about half of all Americans take a few moments to reflect on the past year and make plans for the coming year. Usually, this takes the form of making New Years resolutions about the changes we want to make in our lives.

Unfortunately, despite desire and best efforts, fewer than 10 percentof resolution makers are successful in achieving a single goal. Why is this the case? There is no one reason so many of us fail to achieve our New Years resolutions. Rather, there is a combination of reasons acting in concert.

The first reason many of us fail is that by focusing on change only once during the entire year we end up compiling a long list of daunting goals that we try to achieve at the same time. For most people this is simply overwhelming. A better approach is to make one or two resolutions at a time throughout the year and focus on these resolutions.

Once we have some measure of success with these resolutions, we can move on to additional goals. This provides us momentum in achieving our goals, as even marginal success with one delivers the fuel and fortitude to continue working on our goals as the year progresses.

The second reason many of us fail to achieve our resolutions is that we fall victim to perfectionist thinking. This is when a person confuses an initial or partial failure with complete failure and thus gives up. For example, have you or someone you know started a diet, done well for a couple of weeks, only to succumb to the temptation of a favorite food or cake at an office party or a quick dash through a drive through on a particularly busy day? These are typical experiences for anyone dieting.

The person in thrall to perfectionist thinking immediately berates themselves, their internal critic disparaging them. Just give up. You know you dont have the strength to stick with your diet. This person then gives up dieting until the end of the year, when they once again make a resolution that they will finally lose weight in the next year.However, the reality is that all meaningful long-term change involves occasional failures along the way. Instead of using a temporary setback as an excuse to quit advancing toward their goal, a person needs to figure out what specifically made them fail and then make corrections.

Another reason we may fail is that our goal is too vague. This usually takes the form of an ill-defined time frame or having no reliable way to measure success along the way. For example, the resolution Im going to lose weight, doesnt say how long the person plans to diet, the type of diet, or how they will measure success.

A better resolution would be something like I am going to lose 1 pound a week for 25 weeks beginning next week by restricting myself to 1800 calories a day and walking a half hour every morning. This goal is immediate, specific, and measurable. A resolution like this turns an intimidating challenge, losing 25 pounds, into a manageable challenge, losing one pound a week. It also allows a person to immediately adjust his or her behavior based on their success or failure each week.

A fourth way a person can increase their odds of achieving their goals is to make some resolutions that, while still challenging, are still clearly attainable. These less challenging resolutions give a person a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment that helps steel them against the difficulties encountered when pursuing goals that are more difficult. For example, a person might resolve to get an extra half hour sleep every night or drink one fewer cup of coffee during the day. Not every resolution has to address a profound change.

Finally, having the right mindset about resolutions increases the likelihood of success. We need to remember that our bad habits took years to develop and it will likely take real effort over time to undo them. Researchers who study change tell us that it can take anywhere from 21 to 66 days before a new behavior becomes automatic and that for most people meaningful change requires multiple attempts! However, if we keep at it our new habits will take hold.

Remember, we all have the strength inside of ourselves to achieve remarkable things if we work hard, maintain a positive attitude, and constantly challenge ourselves with new goals. As American writer Elbert Hubbard reminds us, There is no failure except in no longer trying.

Debra B. Johnson is the executive director of St. Clair County Community Mental Health.

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Johnson: You can achieve your New Years resolutions - The Times Herald

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Home » Diets that Work » Johnson: You can achieve your New Years resolutions – The Times Herald