Resolutions never work — this year, try this
Every January 1, a handful of my friends embark on dry January — a month dedicated to good, clean fun (read: not one sip of alcohol).
On week one, they’re pumped — proudly declining invitations to happy hour, opting instead for more cultural activities, like a night at the theatre or a new art exhibition.
By week two, they’re reveling in their newfound energy and professing the benefits of life san alcohol.
But come week three, their motivation starts waning. They’ve scaled back their ambition to a dry-ish January, allowing themselves a few sips on the weekends.
On week four, they’re rueing the day they swore off their beloved after-work cocktail and planning their epic break from sobriety.
Productivity hacks are only effective when we know why we’re avoiding something in the first place.
92% of the time, people abandon their resolutions altogether. Dry January is just one example of why I think New Year’s Resolutions are typically useless.
They don’t cause us to really change our habits. Instead, we focus on one discrete result and rarely shift the thinking that led to the behavior we want to change.
That doesn’t mean we can’t use a new year as a motivator for positive changes. To do so, we…
