According to US News and World Report, 80% of New Years’s Resolutions fail. Yes, you read that right, 80%.
Yet, it is something that people continue to do, year after year, failure after failure. They say the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Are we insane?
What is it about resolutions that we continue to fail? Are they unrealistic? Do you set goals that are too lofty? And what can you do differently this year to set yourself up for success instead of failure?
What’s In a Word?
The Oxford Dictionary defines the word resolution as “the firm decision to do or not to do something”. Well, there are actually a whole host of definitions but this one seems the most applicable.
The word itself sounds firm. It sounds final. It gives little room for error. Which is tough, because we are, after all, human. And we err.
Does this sound familiar? You make a very firm resolution for the new year. I will quit sugar. I will exercise every morning. I will …. You do so well those first days or weeks. You feel proud and resolute in your new goal.
Then, temptation arises. Birthday cake. The snooze button on your alarm. Whatever your temptation might be. You fall off the wagon so to speak.
So you throw it all away. If you can’t succeed then why bother? Nobody likes to feel like a failure.
How about a different word?
Are you the kind of person that tends to be harder on yourself than you are on others? I am.
So how can you shift your goal, or more importantly, your path to get there? Intention. The word even sounds gentler. Like an ocean wave. According to Oxford, an intention is what you “intend or plan to do, your aim.
Your aim. It gives you something to work towards, a goal, a destination. Yet, it allows you to choose the path to get there. It is something you are always working on or towards.
What’s the difference?
Resolutions often focus on the negative. Something you want to eliminate from your life.
Intentions, however, tend to focus on the positive. What do you want to create more of in the new year? More clarity, better health, more sleep. They are the things that bring you joy.
A resolution ties you to the future. You will only be happy when that finite goal is achieved. I’ll be happy when I lose 5 pounds. I’ll be happy when I get the promotion.
An intention keeps you tethered to the present. It invites you to be aware of the aim each day. Maybe you find a daily mantra or prayer. Maybe you journal each day on your progress. What is going well? What is challenging for you?
Resolutions are firm. They don’t tend to allow room for error or the unpredictability of life.
Intentions are fluid. And when life is fickle, this helps.
Find Success
Keep It Simple. Keep it Adaptable. Keep it positive. For example, “ I am going to make healthier food choices” is likely to be more successful than “I am not going to eat carbs all year”. Or, “I am going to move my body more” will give you more freedom than “I will go to the gym 4 days a week.”
When you set an intention, you define the path. There may be hundreds of ways to get there and you now have the power to choose.
You can choose to celebrate each small success along the way instead of being attached to the end goal.
So how will you choose to shape the New Year ahead?