Goal Setting and New Year Resolutions

New year resolutions going well? If it is, congratulations! If it's not, please continue reading...

If you were to ask a sample of people to list their resolutions, you’d likely hear the same old goals: get fit, lose weight, stop smoking/drinking/over-spending –- basically quit all our bad habits and adopt some better ones. I’m always naively optimistic when I hear people describe the commitment they are going to make to improve their health and lifestyle. Yet what they do contradicts what they say they want.

The classic “fix everything that’s ever been wrong with me” list.

With a feast-famine mentality, these resolutions are often preceded by six weeks of holiday indulgences. Just like the trampling pandemonium of Black Friday shopping, people feel they must get their fill of fun before the New Year of restraint starts.

In early January the gyms are packed with penitents. Then, just as quickly as the gyms filled, they empty. By mid-February, we see again that good intentions petered out before the 3-5 lbs of holiday weight gain even got a chance to say goodbye.

People who already have good health and fitness habits (or think they do) often turn to less egocentric resolutions: to spend more time with loved ones, to enjoy life more, to learn something new, and to be more charitable. I certainly have great respect for those who consider ways they can contribute to something bigger than themselves; it’s a humbling reminder of something lost on the holiday season.

But again, good hearts and good intentions don’t always equal success.

One study (Norcross et al 2002) suggested that about half of Americans typically make New Year’s Resolutions. They found that 77% of resolvers stuck to it for one week, 55% for one month, and 40% for six months. But at the two-year mark, only 19% of resolvers were still successful. So, let’s see… doing the math…

0.19 x 0.5 = 0.095 0.095 x 100 = 9.5%

Yes, fewer than 10% of people –- 1 out of every 10 people –- make and stick to a New Year’s Resolution successfully.

On the other hand, the authors try to put an optimistic slant on it: “In this case, the success rate of resolutions is approximately ten times higher than the success rate of adults desiring to change their behavior but not making a resolution.” Well, true. You have to start somewhere, I guess.

Why don’t resolutions work?

The idea behind making a resolution is sound: a person commits to reforming a habit or an aspect of their lifestyle to achieve a specific goal. In theory, a New Year’s resolution is a great example of successful goal setting, much like the type of goal setting I coach:

-you establish goals at regular intervals (in this case, once a year) -you assess the outcome (year end review) -you adjust or set new goals regularly (New Year resolutions)

With January symbolizing “out with the old, in with the new”, it’s a convenient time to start fresh, and clear the slate of the past years “should-have-done”s. So far, this all looks pretty good.

However, although most New Year’s resolutioners can identify the outcomes they would like to achieve in a given year, they usually don’t create the plan for execution. Without a plan, resolutions are too vague to hold value over time. There is no commitment behind the resolution and no defined means of support to achieve the goal.

In addition, planning involves careful consideration of what, exactly, you are trying to achieve. Resolutions made hastily are not well thought out and remain shallow, empty promises lacking real meaning. Without an understanding of why these outcomes are important and the reasons behind them, motivation wanes. Eventually resolutions are tossed aside as quickly as that new gym membership card or latest diet book.

In their study of resolutioners, Norcross et al identified a few factors that they found predicted success.

What helped:

-Being in charge of and taking responsibility for one’s own change (rather than looking to someone else) -Readiness to change -Positive thinking -Surrounding oneself with reminders of their goals, and what to do right (such as motivational quotes or pictures) -Avoiding triggers for problem behaviour (for example, they didn’t keep tempting food or cigarettes in the house)

What didn’t help:

-Desire to change (just wanting it isn’t enough) -Self-reevaluation and self-blame (thinking about how your problem hurts you and/or other people; self-criticism) -Wishing the problem wasn’t there -Minimizing the threat (aka “Well, it’s not a big deal, really”)

As the list above shows, just wanting something isn’t enough, nor is disliking the current state of affairs. It’s the process of planning and setting actions in place that shape the behaviours that lead to the changed outcome.

Even if we have a few good short-term plans (such as “get a gym membership next week”), lack of long term planning leaves us without contingencies and flexibility for what may lie ahead. Goals can change and life happens along the way. For instance, what if you end up too busy to get that gym membership next week?

In another post, I’ll look at some strategies for getting those resolutions to stick. For now, let’s see what the experts are doing, and what features their resolutions share.

No perfect time

When we strive for perfection, the setbacks and challenges that are inevitable can leave us feeling that the only option is to quit and start anew when the time is right. If someone has found that elusive perfect time, let me know. I gave up on a long time ago but if it’s out there, I want in.

Looking back on my own year, I didn't set any resolutions or goals last January. When I think about all that’s happened over the past 12 months, I feel good about what I’ve achieved in 2016. I appreciate how much progress I have made (and how much work there still is to do…) towards a better, physical me.

But this is really just part of a personal commitment I made a long time ago: to get stronger, fitter and healthier with every decade. As I turned 40, 50 and so on, my goal is to feel that I am the best I have ever been. That is my resolution I make every day; not something that can be left to fulfill when life is sweet as roses.

There are goals I have for myself that might be fitting for a New Year’s Resolution. More recently I have been much more aware of the impact of my food sources on the environment and on my own health. My goal is to include a greater variety of vegetarian meals in my diet and to get as much of my food from local farmers as possible. It wouldn’t occur to me to wait until Jan 1st, 2018, to start this.

Whether for fun, career, health or for the good of others, it seems that each successful person approaches goal setting and success in similar ways (I will discuss them in detail next time). They identify specific areas for improvement, bite off small manageable chunks, make a plan that includes immediate action, and figure out how to stick to their guns. And they remember which strategies have worked best for them in the past.

Though the tradition of New Year’s Resolutions will always be tied to Janus, the mythical symbol who could look both back on past events and forward to the future, tradition does not necessarily bring success. No matter what the date, embrace the opportunity for goal setting and new beginnings everyday.

Start now.