Only 12% of People Stick with Their New Year’s Resolutions. 

Here’s How You Can Too (According to Science). 

If you’re making a New Year’s resolution this year, the stats are not in your favor. A full 88% of people fail to accomplish their goals.

And what’s the most common goal among New Year’s resolution-ers, year-after-year? You probably guessed it: weight loss.

I was messaging with a friend recently about our New Year’s resolutions and she said this to me:

“Every year I make the pledge to eat healthier and exercise. I start out the year eating better and exercising, and I usually lose a couple pounds, but I never seem to get the results I’m looking, which is super frustrating. I inevitably quit and feel guilty the rest of the year.”

Hold up a minute.

She said she lost weight but still ended up quitting.

Do you see the problem here?

She was too focused on what she didn’t accomplish to notice all the things she had done to get healthier.

She relied on her willpower to get her through the tough times, and it wasn’t enough. That’s why it’s no surprise that research shows that relying on willpower alone will cause most people to fail.

What’s the answer then?

It’s simple. You need to learn the research-backed methods for developing healthy habits.

How Healthy People Achieve Their Goals

Let’s stick with weight loss as an example.

According to the largest study of people who have lost weight and kept it off, these are the most common traits among successful “weight losers”:
• 78% eat breakfast every day.
• 75% weigh themselves at least once a week.
• 62% watch less than 10 hours of TV per week.
• 90% exercise, on average, about 1 hour per day.

Notice a trend here? These are all habits.

Anyone can implement them … but only a small percentage of people do. Why?

Because most people go about it all wrong.

Why Embracing Positivity is Vital

I think, therefore I am.
-René Descartes

If “the power of positive thinking” sounds like new-agey nonsense to you, it’s okay—you’re not alone.

But research shows that a positive attitude can place you on a path of growth and open your mind to new possibilities. And behavior change researchers say that you’re more likely to make permanent changes when those changes are self-motivated and rooted in positive thinking.

This is crucially important to changing unhealthy behaviors.

Why?

Because right now you probably have negative emotions attached to your bad habits (i.e., “I feel guilty about not working out, eating healthy, setting a better example for my kids, etc.”).

Here’s how you start turning those negative thoughts into positive habits that stick …

How to Form a Healthy Habit That Sticks

Commitment is a powerful psychological principle you can use to turn bad habits into good ones.

Once you commit to something and “take a stand,” your brain behaves in ways that are stubbornly consistent with that stand.

Here are two simple steps to help you do it:

1. Start a commitment journal or daily planner. In his book Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion, Dr. Robert Cialdani notes how if people commit orally or in writing to an idea or goal, they are more likely to honor that commitment. It’s simple to do too. Once a week, sit down for 5 minutes and write down the healthy commitments you intend to make each day. Start with very small commitments, and be specific. For example, if you want to eat better, commit to eat just one per serving of vegetables per day. Or commit to only eating fast food once per week. These will eventually build into habits, and other healthy behaviors will happen as a result.

2. Use implementation intentions. Peter Gollwitzer, a New York University psychologist, found that when people form an "implementation intention"—which is when you say, "If A happens, then I'll do B"—their success rate more than doubles. Here are a few examples:

• “If it is Tuesday, Wednesday, or Friday at 5:30 p.m., then I will go to the gym.”
• “If I get a craving for soda, then I will drink a glass of water instead.” “
• “If the dessert menu gets passed around at dinner tonight, I will say no.”

The goal here is to create situations that trigger behaviors automatically.

Research shows that using implementation intentions can help you lose more weight. So even if you’re skeptical, give it a try and see if it works for you.

How Long It Takes to Change an Unhealthy Behavior

The latest science tells us it takes between 18 and 254 days—and 66 days on average—to make a permanent healthy behavior change.

It may take more for you, it may take less.

The important things to remember are: 1) make your commitments, and 2) take some type of action every day—even if it’s tiny.

BJ Fogg, founder of the Stanford Persuasive Technology Lab, says that “daily habits are the most powerful of all behaviors.”

You will experience setbacks and moments of frustration, fear, and doubt.

Everyone does.

How you respond to these moments of uncertainty will determine whether you join the 12% of people that accomplish their New Year’s resolutions or the 88% majority who fail.

One step you can take to make a commitment to your health is to subscribe to my free newsletter. You’ll get weekly tips to help you succeed where you’ve failed in the past (and some bonus gifts for joining).

Cheers to a Happy and Healthy New Year.