Why do we struggle to keep our new years resolutions?

I proudly told all my friends that I haven't touched a drop of alcohol since January the 1st. How great I felt, knowing they hadn't achieved what I had. Then almost as soon as it was out of my mouth, my gloating smile evaporated. I realised it was only the 14th. I hadn't even completed a full two weeks and that wasn't exactly a trauma. The biggest trauma was the fact I still had over two weeks to go. Yikes.

So, its possible that keeping new years resolutions is hard simply because January seems to be such a ridiculously long month. I keep checking my bank to see if I've been paid. I haven't as its nowhere near the end of the month yet. I seem to have been 'in' January forever.

I however, believe we can't stick to our resolutions for a number of other reasons. We rarely share what it is we have decided to do/change. If we have decided to do more exercise but have only decided in our head, then so what if we fail to achieve it? Nobody else will know. And what is 'more exercise'? It needs to be monitored, it needs to be specific. Something like 'by May I will be fit enough to run a half marathon' is more tangible. This way we can physically see if it has been a success - by actually running the marathon. We also need to make a public statement about it. I don't mean on the BBC news but by telling people what it is you are planning to achieve you are passing some of the responsibility onto them. People around you become interested and will ask 'how is training going?' and 'are you getting sponsers?' etc. These will help motivate you.

Think of it like a wedding. If you are 'going out with' someone, no matter how sad it would be if it came to an end, it would (most of the time) be a little easier than if you were married. You wouldn't have to go through the whole divorce process and being an ex-girlfriend/boyfriend can be a bit easier than an ex-wife/husband or divorcee. So, by standing in front of friends, family, witnesses and declaring you will do your utmost to be together forever, makes the commitment real. People have heard what you said so walking away just isn't as easy. There is more at stake to work for.

So, when making new years resolutions think:

* Tell someone what it is you plan to do, tell everyone.

* Choose the wording carefully, it should excite you when you say it rather than fill you with dread.

* Set a time limit to motivate you further. If you don't, there is no rush and it will never be achieved.

* Make sure it is measureable. What exactly will you have achieved?

* Have fun with it.
Good luck.