Creating a New Year’s Resolution has been a tradition that’s gone on for thousands of years. These resolutions often involve self-improvement, financial goals or new experiences — good stuff!
Resolutions are a great way to start the year, but apparently only 9.2 percent of people who make resolutions actually follow through with them. Surprised? Probably not. We all make goals we don’t always reach, and that’s a perfectly human thing to do.
Just in case though, here are some tips on how to help you try to stick to your resolutions.
1. Make obtainable goals
Realize that starting small isn’t a bad thing. Maybe you’re trying to quit smoking, but you’ve been smoking your whole life and you’re not 100 percent sure you can do it. Cutting cold turkey can be overwhelming — it’s also the least effective way to quit — and can potentially stop you from even making that first step. Your resolutions don’t have to be all or nothing. Maybe make a resolution to smoke less. Or, make a resolution to taper down in a way that makes sense.
Make resolutions that help you work towards a goal. Even little victories can be very rewarding. Who says you have to complete a goal by the end of the year? It’s an arbitrary number determined by the amount of rotations we make around the sun. Don’t let it stop you from moving forward.
2. Make resolutions that come from a place of self-love
We’re loving ourselves in 2019.
Look over your resolutions. Do they go along the lines of, “I want to change because I’m the worst”? Or, do they say, “I want to see if I can improve”? If your resolutions sound more like the former than the latter, maybe consider working on how you speak to yourself…
We often use self-deprecating language as a way to push ourselves to do better. Self-deprecation can actually stop you from making progress. As someone who has struggled with weight my whole life, my New Year’s resolutions have always been on the basis of losing weight. I kept thinking, “I’m fat and ugly and that needs to change.” When I shifted into a mentality of self-love and thought, “I’m beautiful no matter how much I weigh, but I want to be a healthier me,” that’s when I started to see results.
Self-love doesn’t happen overnight, but start by changing how you talk to yourself.
3. Get out of your comfort zone.
You’re not gonna see change if you don’t make that first step out of your comfort zone!
Get started on those resolutions immediately — or else you’re never going to. Get that gym membership. Start that YouTube channel. Start working on that new cam site you’ve heard so many great things about. Don’t get stuck in last year’s routine. It’ll be scary at first, but you’ll be a pro in no time.
4. Don’t stress about the results
Maybe change is happening slow for you, or you’re going through a rough patch. That’s definitely not a valid reason to give up. Don’t wait until next year to try again. Try again now, or tomorrow, or as soon as you can. Just keep trying.
Remember that we’re only human, and we’re not always going to succeed. Maybe you didn’t make your goal to travel to the Bahamas. Try again next year — the Bahamas will still be there.
I hope you have an amazing new year, and I’ll leave you with these wise words from my Lord and Savior, Britney Spears: “You want a hot body? You want a Bugatti? You want a Maserati? You better work bitch.”
So, get to work!
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Ariane Torres is a writer who says funny things on occasion. Email her at ariane@ynotcam.com and find her on Twitter at @tofulumpia.
Imagine via Angus Wurth.
