Ten tips for setting New Year resolutions
by Mervin StraughanDecember 2022
Each day offers an opportunity to make changes though many people choose New Year to kickstart the process. It's a threshold that marks the end of one period and the start of another. The slate is clean.
If we're serious about setting goals and resolutions, we need to plan and commit if we're to get past lunchtime on Day One. So, before putting pen to paper or tapping into a phone app or tablet, here are some key points to make the process more effective.
1. Review and project
Gauge what went well during the previous 12 months and address anything that curbed, distracted or sabotaged your efforts to avoid this happening again. Now, wind your life 12 months ahead. Imagine you're looking back on a successful year. How much better does your world feel, look, and sound? Use these images and emotions to stay motivated in the months ahead.
3. Is your motivation intrinsic or extrinsic?
Motivation is the fuel that keeps us going. It's the psychological process that gets us to do what we do. We're motivated intrinsically or extrinsically.
Intrinsic motivation, the longer lasting of the two, is the desire for personal growth, learning and fulfilment. It's about rising to the challenge and enjoying the sense of achievement.
2. Purpose
Identify goals that support your purpose. Purpose gives life meaning. Once we know what it is, everything else flows. Ikigai, the Japanese philosophy whose name translates as 'a reason for being,' tells us that our purpose lies at the point where answers to four questions converge:
Identify goals that support your purpose. Purpose gives life meaning. Once we know what it is, everything else flows. Ikigai, the Japanese philosophy whose name translates as 'a reason for being,' tells us that our purpose lies at the point where answers to four questions converge:
- What do I enjoy doing?
- What am I good at?
- Can I get paid for it?
- What does society or the world need?
Motivation is the fuel that keeps us going. It's the psychological process that gets us to do what we do. We're motivated intrinsically or extrinsically.
Intrinsic motivation, the longer lasting of the two, is the desire for personal growth, learning and fulfilment. It's about rising to the challenge and enjoying the sense of achievement.
Extrinsic motivation is externally driven and involves actions and behaviours designed to avoid punishment or to receive reward such as money, power, or prestige.
4. Have an internal locus of control
Research by US psychologist Julian Rotter in 1954 found that people who believe they have significant influence over their outcomes (an internal locus of control) are more likely to succeed than those who believe success is determined by external factors such as destiny, luck, or the actions of others (an external locus of control).
5. Set specific and stretching goals
A 1960s study by US psychologist Edwin Locke concluded that setting specific and difficult goals results in better performance than vague or easy ones. When we achieve challenging goals, our sense of accomplishment is greater.
6. Categorise your goals
If you have a long list of goals, it's helpful group them. This makes them easier to monitor and review and it enables us to identify how goals might support or impact one another. Useful headings include:
Research by US psychologist Julian Rotter in 1954 found that people who believe they have significant influence over their outcomes (an internal locus of control) are more likely to succeed than those who believe success is determined by external factors such as destiny, luck, or the actions of others (an external locus of control).
5. Set specific and stretching goals
A 1960s study by US psychologist Edwin Locke concluded that setting specific and difficult goals results in better performance than vague or easy ones. When we achieve challenging goals, our sense of accomplishment is greater.
6. Categorise your goals
If you have a long list of goals, it's helpful group them. This makes them easier to monitor and review and it enables us to identify how goals might support or impact one another. Useful headings include:
- Career
- Family and loved ones
- Finances
- Friends and social
- Health
- Hobbies and pastimes
- Home and neighbourhood
- Personal growth.
Make a brief plan for achieving each goal and by when. List the people who can help and the resources you'll need. If they're big goals, break them into smaller ones.
8. Review progress regularly
Review your goals regularly. You might even carry them in a diary, on your phone or on a piece of paper in a purse or wallet so they're always at hand. Measure progress. Scratch off goals you've achieved and add new ones or adapt existing ones if your plans change.
Review your goals regularly. You might even carry them in a diary, on your phone or on a piece of paper in a purse or wallet so they're always at hand. Measure progress. Scratch off goals you've achieved and add new ones or adapt existing ones if your plans change.
9. Celebrate successes
Celebrate each accomplishment no matter how small. This reminds us we're making progress, boosts our confidence, and motivates us to keep on track.
10. Mind your language
Listen carefully to your self talk. Use language that empowers and shows ownership. Getting into the habit of using phrases such as “I choose to …” and “It’s my decision to …” is a useful starting point.
Listen carefully to your self talk. Use language that empowers and shows ownership. Getting into the habit of using phrases such as “I choose to …” and “It’s my decision to …” is a useful starting point.
Reframe negative statements. Instead of saying: 'I’m rubbish at statistics,' say: 'Here’s an opportunity to improve my knowledge of statistics.'
And while you're at it, banish the word ‘try’ (unless you're playing rugby) because it communicates doubt about your likelihood of succeeding.
Final thoughts: the journey and the challenge
Goals give us direction. Without them, we drift, meander or stagnate. However, it's important to note that the journey to achieving our goals is as important if not more. The goal is the beacon that we head towards but we grow and learn from the process.
Some people complain that seeing goals through to successful outcomes is difficult. That's the point.