5 Reasons Why Your New Year's Resolutions Have Failed

So, we're now five days into January, who's new year's resolution is still standing? "New year, new start" is the phrase on everyone's lips come January 1st and with that comes the daunting task of having to think of a new year's resolution. People make resolutions for many reasons but it appears that most of us make them in order to 'lose weight' or 'shape up' after the calorific chaos of the Christmas period, but what happens after you've made your resolution? Well research shows that most people, despite claiming they kept their resolution, actually broke it within the year while some even broke it in the first month! But after making all those promises to yourself, why exactly do new year's resolutions fail? Here are 5 reasons why your new year's resolutions may have failed:

1. Your goals are unrealistic.

Whatever your resolution may have been, it may have failed purely based on this; the fact that your resolution was just too unrealistic. When planning a new venture, it's important to make your goals measurable and therefore easier to achieve. There's a fine line between pushing yourself and pushing yourself too far. For example, instead of saying "I'll go to the gym for 2 hours 7 days a week", try to think of a time that's more realistic. After all, while you may start out with all the best intentions, the chances are that life will take over and before you know it, you'll be struggling to find the time.

2. Your resolutions aren't properly defined. 

"Get healthy", "Go travelling more" and "help others" are some good examples of the type of ambiguous resolutions that people try and subsequently fail. Be more specific! How do you intend to get healthy? Where do you want to travel to? Who and how do you want to help others. You may not have a full-blown plan made when you initially make these resolutions, but it is handy to think of a plan of action. This will not only give you a better idea on how your resolution can be realised, but also why. You've probably experienced it before: an idea or a plan fizzling to nothing as you start to lose interest in it. It's the same for those new year's resolutions. If you know why you made the resolution, you're more likely to commit to it and eventually achieve it. 

3. Your resolutions are the same as last year.

C'mon, admit it, your resolution for this year sounds a lot like the one last year or the year before that. The likelihood is that you're not alone in that but it's also the reason your resolution efforts are failing. If you failed your resolution last year and made the same one this year, it's not entirely surprising that your resolution failed. If you want another shot at last year's failed resolution, how about looking at why you failed before and then taking steps towards making it a success the next time around. Maybe make it more specific or perhaps think of another way you can achieve your goal? After all, it's called a new year for a reason so out with the old and in with the new!

4. You're in the wrong mindset.

Being in the right mindset for your resolution is one of the most important factors when thinking of your new year goals. If your heart and mind aren't in the spirit of making the resolution work then the less likely it is to succeed. So, if you're guilty of putting things off and having bad time keeping skills, then the way to success is to consciously make more effort to make time or set some time aside specifically for yourself and your goal. You'll soon find your resolution coming to fruition. 

5. You only made your resolution because you thought you should.

Be honest. Did you see someone else announcing their new year's resolution on Facebook and thought you should make one too? Among the many other reasons for failure, this one is probably the one that gets most people and is probably the one that no-one will be willing to own up to. Making new year's resolutions are almost more of a social accessory these days with social media meaning like we cannot help but compare ourselves to others. Don't be distracted or influenced by your social media followers or friends, make goals and resolutions for yourself, not for show. 

So really the lesson here is to make your new year's resolutions for you and make things easier for yourself by being clear with your goals. Failing that, make a resolution to not make resolutions at all! I have done this myself and it's going superbly so far- I would thoroughly recommend it! I still have goals and wishes for myself obviously but they're not regimented. I have always tried to improve myself and strive for more, so it's less of a resolution and more of an overall mindset.

As for my new job, I'm starting to find my feet now although the steep learning curve is probably going to continue into the next few weeks.

That's all for this week! Have a great weekend and I will be back next week!