These tips will help you keep your New Year’s resolutions
The excitement of the new year brings a world of endless possibilities and hope, but it can be harder to execute.
When Americans were polled about their New Year’s resolution, only 9-12% of them reported successfully sticking to their resolutions for the entire year.
In order to be successful with your resolution, The New York Times shared a few tips and tricks to try.
Write down the specifics
Do a little digging into why you want to make a resolution. For example, “getting healthy” can mean different things for different people.
Eating healthy can look like managing one’s food, going to the gym a certain number of times a week, or going to sleep earlier. Be specific about your goal.
Make sure it’s realistic
Completing your resolutions should be a marathon and not a race. If you want to save money and have a figure in mind. Ask yourself if that figure actually works with your current state of finances. Will you be able to achieve it within 12 months?
The point is that you don’t want to set yourself up for failure by making an unrealistic resolution.
“If you do it out of the sense of self-hate or remorse or a strong passion in that moment, it doesn’t usually last long,” said Dr. Michael Bennett, a psychiatrist and co-author of two self-help books, to the New York Times.
Is it relevant to you?
It’s easy to jump on the bandwagon of the most popular trends like Dry January. Trends are fun, but is your resolution aligning with what’s relevant to you? If you’d like to entertain the idea of a dry January but know you’d fall short every now and again, then opting for a damp January is better.
“Studies show that even a modest reduction in drinking can lead to improvements in blood pressure, mental health, and liver health. It can lower risk for cancer and heart disease,” says the Washington Post.
Our picks this week
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution is your No. 1 source for things to do, see, make, buy and eat through the holidays. Here are our recommendations:
LISTEN: What’s on Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens’ holiday playlist?
DRINK: Here’s the holiday spirit Atlanta’s sipping this Christmas
DO: Seven places to show off your ice skating moves in and around Atlanta
VISIT: Full AJC holiday guide for things to do, buy and enjoy
For our full coverage of holiday events around metro Atlanta, check out the AJC’s Things to Do page.
About the Author
Ebony Williams is a writer, indie producer and director, and journalist for a variety of magazine outlets. Her career has led her to create content for entertainment, sports, lifestyle, local breaking news and more.
