How to Be Successful with New Year’s Resolutions

By Helene Segura, M.A. Ed., CPO® | December 28, 2016 |

Did you know that only eight percent of Americans are successful with their New Year’s Resolutions?

That seems crazy, doesn’t it? That means 92% of people who make resolutions don’t make good on them. Why does that happen?

For starters, the top New Year’s Resolutions involve life changes. Google “top five New Year’s Resolutions.” Each year, they include lose weight or quit smoking or exercise more or save more money or get organized. These are major life changes, which require planning and support. They don’t just happen magically overnight.

What can you do to make sure that you’re successful with your New Year’s Resolutions?

Choose one. Some folks create lengthy “do better” lists. “I want to start yoga, eat healthier, cut out sodas, be more organized, save more money, and stop being late to meetings.” That’s a lot to take on if you haven’t been doing any of those in the previous year. Focus on only one change.

Create a plan. What all will you need to do in order to be successful? If you’re going to start eating healthier, when will you learn what “healthier food” means? When will you do your meal plans? Who will do the grocery shopping? Who will cook? Do a brainstorm and figure out what steps need to happen.

Develop targets. When people say that they want to “get organized,” that’s great, but it’s such a broad term. What does that mean? What parts of your life do you want to get organized? Choose a measurable target so that you know how far or how close you are to achieving your goal. For example, you might set a target of removing one bag of donations per week, or re-organizing one shelf or drawer of items per week. Choose something measurable. When our goals are too broad, we can’t measure them, and we, therefore, think we’re failing because we think we’re not making any progress when in actuality may have already done quite a bit.

Reflect with power. At the end of each day, give yourself credit for each positive thing you did – even if it’s something small like you saved $1.50 by ordering a smaller coffee. Once you’ve given yourself high fives for the good you’ve accomplished, then you can take a look at next steps you’ll take to move you closer to your goal.

Find an accountability partner. We’re more successful when we have a support system, so find a coach, an organization, a club, a friend…someone who you can report your progress to. When we have to check in with someone, we’ll be more likely to work toward our goals.

By taking a few moments to map out your plan, you can be successful with your New Year’s Resolutions!

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For more info about how to be successful with change (like New Year’s Resolutions) – and other productivity tools and tips – from time management keynote speaker Helene Segura, click here.

About Helene Segura, M.A. Ed., CPO®

As The Inefficiency Assassin™, Time Management Fixer Helene Segura empowers professionals on the go with the tools to slay lost time. Personal inefficiency at work leads to increased stress levels, lower morale, higher absenteeism, more turnover – and rising spending on employee health care and hiring. Why not improve productivity, decrease stress levels, and increase profits instead?The author of four books – two of which were Amazon best-sellers – Helene Segura has been the featured organization expert in more than 200 media interviews. She has coached hundreds of clients to productivity success and performance improvement by applying neuroscience and behavioral modification techniques to wipe out destructive, time-wasting habits.Helene turns time management on its head by sharing both client case studies and pop culture examples to teach her mind-bending framework for decreasing interruptions, distractions and procrastination so that companies can spend more time generating revenue.

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