New Year's Resolutions: The Good, Bad and Ugly

Article by Sally Hart

The beginning of the year is symbolic of optimism and hope, as we anticipate the lighter days to come. It is the perfect time for a fresh start, which is perhaps why so many people create New Year's resolutions.

The most common intentions are health-related – such as losing weight, giving up smoking or getting more exercise – so surely that means resolutions are good for our health? Not necessarily...

Amy Cuddy, a social psychologist at Harvard Business School, argues that resolutions can do more harm than good, especially when we set unreasonable goals that are destined to fail.

Sadly, most resolutions do fail; in a study of more than three thousand people who made New Year’s resolutions, only 12% actually reached their goal by the end of the year.

Failure Can Affect How We Feel

Missing those goals we set for ourselves can leave us in a worse state than we were in before. We still have those extra pounds or bad habits, but we now also criticise ourselves as weak or lacking in willpower. This creates yet more anxiety and stress.

The resulting low self-esteem can even lead to further unhealthy action, perhaps driving the urge to drink more or binge in an effort to feel better. To avoid this downward spiral, we need to put any failure down to the strategy adopted rather than to our own innate qualities.

Understanding Why We Fail To Keep Resolutions

Cuddy attributes failure to several factors. First of all, most of us create resolutions in absolute terms, such as vowing to visit the gym three times a week. So, if a week goes by when this is not possible, we have absolutely failed in our resolve.

Worse, our resolutions are often based on addressing things we dislike about ourselves, such as being overweight or having bad habits. Cuddy argues that these negative emotions can be demotivating, especially if we focus on an unrealistic outcome rather than the process.

Willpower Isn't Something We Can Rely On

For some time, psychologists have been saying that willpower is like a muscle that can be strengthened (and overtired), but recent studies show it is a far more unreliable resource than that.

Psychologist Carol Dweck, and her colleagues at Stanford University, have shown that signs of ego depletion (running out of willpower) were seen only in test subjects who believed willpower to be a limited resource.

If willpower can be lost because of self-defeating thoughts, perhaps it is more like an emotion that ebbs and flows; to succeed, we need to learn to ride its waves.

Success May Reflect Our General Response To Expectations

In her book The Four Tendencies, Gretchen Rubin sets out a framework to help understand why we act the way we do. Rubin argues that we each have an inclination to meet, or resist, inner and outer expectations.

For example, an ‘obliger’ is someone who strives to meet others’ expectations before their own. This tendency will show up in someone who can always meet an external deadline yet struggles to follow through on their own plans.

For an obliger, the key to sticking to a personal resolution may be to become accountable to others, such as by committing to raise money for charity.

Rubin goes on to describe a ‘questioner’ as someone who tends to resist outer expectations but can easily meet their own. A questioner is more likely to stick to something if they have decided for themselves what to do and how to do it; what others think is of little relevance.

Rubin depicts ‘upholders’ as those who automatically do the right thing for others and for themselves; they are rather good at resolutions. Perversely, a ‘rebel’ will resist all expectations, even their own. Rebellious types may need to trick themselves into working towards their goals, but they are most likely to resist making any resolutions at all!

If we can set New Year’s resolutions in line with our natural tendencies, we stand a much better chance of success.

Making Resolutions Can Still Bring About Positive Change

The good news is that while many of us do fail, psychologists have found that those who set New Year’s resolutions are ten times more likely to actually change their behaviour than people who don’t set any yearly goals at all. So it is definitely worth trying!

Here are some tips on keeping resolutions as given by the experts:

• Make just one achievable goal. Working on a single change helps to focus energy and avoid being overwhelmed.

• Phrase your objective in positive language. Aim to ‘be free from the need to smoke’, rather than talking about ‘giving up’.

• Prepare a clear plan of action. Cuddy advocates "self-nudging," a process of constantly setting small goals in lieu of large ones.

• Reward yourself for each step taken in the right direction. This helps to associate achievement with pleasurable feelings.

• Have appropriate support in place, particularly if you want to tackle an addiction.

• Don’t give up at the first slip. Remember that establishing new patterns of behaviour takes time. Reframe mistakes as simply a need to tweak the plan.

Those who set New Year's resolutions are ten times more likely to actually change their behaviour than people who don't make any yearly goals at all.

How Health Professionals Can Help

January is a great time to promote specific health programmes, as take-up will be at a peak. Health practices can also highlight relevant external support organisations, making sure that any posters and leaflets on display are up to date.

Be prepared to recommend phone apps that can support healthy choices. As well as having practical resources available, consider how your organisation can provide emotional support to those who are trying to make changes. Health professionals are in a great position to coach patients towards success.

Resolve To Be Kind To Yourself

A resolution is simply a promise to oneself, so make it a promise you can keep.

A resolution can also be defined as a solution to a difficulty or problem.

Maybe there is something in your life that you need to address. Now is a great time to start.

Sally Hart

Sally Hart works as a consultant helping companies to reward their employees, covering everything from strategy design to implementation, including benchmarking, policy development, performance management, training, and communication. Having qualified as a management accountant, her background is in finance, which can be a great help when it comes to working to a budget.

More recently, she studied Applied Positive Psychology at Bucks University, and she enjoys writing about performance, psychology, and health.