Some people see New Year as another chance to start afresh and another opportunity to make New Year resolutions. Is this time for realistic yearly goal-setting? Is this time to make an unbreakable promise to oneself?Let's take a look at the New Year resolution statistics. 40 to 45% of American adult make one or more resolutions each year. It is seen that 75% resolutions are kept past the first week, 71% past the second week, 64% past one month and 46% past 6 months. (Source: Journal of Clinical Psychology, Volume 58, Issue 4, 2002.) The four most popular New Year resolution topics are related to self-improvement or education, weight, money and relationships. People have seen this time of the year as the time to get into good habits and practices ranging from practicing vegetarianism, getting rid of wicked temptations of junk food, improving fitness levels or embarking on a dream journey.
Like all other goals, New Year resolutions should be specific, have measurable landmarks, and a solid deadline. It should be made very Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time based (SMART Goals). For example, if your resolution is to lose weight, you should aim at a realistic level of weight loss. Aiming too high might provide discouragement and might scare you in the very beginning. Breakdown of the final goal into short term goals and tracking progress will help you stay motivated. If the goal is well attainable and realistic, it will not let the enthusiasm and the hope die out after a few weeks. Sharing your resolution with your family and friends can help provide support to help you make the change and attain the goal. Goals should be made fun and rewarding with a "Carrot, not Stick" approach. After accomplishing the short term goal, reward yourself with what you enjoy the most. (Of course not a box of chocolates for weight loss but something that does not contradict with your goal). This can increase the probability of success, hence will not let you feel guilty of breaking your promise to yourself and at the same time this will honor your commitment to change. Experts say it takes about 21 days for a new activity, such as exercising, to become a habit, and 6 months for it to become part of your personality.
Not only adults but also kids can have New Year resolutions. American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) had released healthy New Year resolution ideas for kids of different age groups. For example, preschoolers could be helped to have resolutions like cleaning up their toys, brushing teeth twice daily and washing their hands. For kids 5-12 years old these are extended into trying out new sport or activity, wearing helmet while biking, wearing sunscreen before going out in the sun, being friendly with other kids and not to release personal information on the Internet. Teenager's New Year resolutions range from proper nutrition to usage of cell phones e.g. they will not use cell phones and text while driving, they will choose non-violent TV shows and video games and will treat other people with respect.
It is seen that even though a lot of people who make New Year resolutions do break them, but resolutions are useful. Some might believe that making confident choices everyday on what really matters to you is more important than New Year resolutions. People who make resolutions are 10 times more likely to attain their goals than people who don't make resolutions. It's good to look forward to what we want and accomplish that, but we must spend time reflecting and be thankful to what we have attained in the past year.
