The clock strikes twelve. The excitement of a new beginning gives you the motivation to drastically improve your life. You set several goals and start off strong by sticking to them. However, two weeks pass and these goals seem impossible to stick with, so you give up and think “Maybe next year”. This is a pattern that many people fall into after the onset of a new year. This has led to the term “New Year’s Resolution” getting a bad reputation as being pointless because they never seem to work. Why is this? What about the mindset of setting these goals sets someone up for failure? 

Many people fall victim to the mindset that does not allow for any setbacks. For example, someone has a goal to “only eat healthy food”. This is an all-or-nothing mindset, meaning if someone slips up and eats something that is not the healthiest, they may feel that they failed and abandon the plan altogether. It is important to instead look at the bigger picture, and aim for an upward trend instead of constant linear progress. For instance, if someone usually gets fast food five days a week, instead of cutting it out completely, they could aim to have it two times a week. This goal is less harsh and allows for an easier transition to eventually limiting it even more. 

Another problem with New Year’s resolutions is that the goals are often not specific enough. It is very difficult to follow goals if they are not concrete. For example, if someone has a goal to “get better grades”, that is not very specific and is not measurable. However, if someone has a goal to end the year with a B, they should calculate the percentage they would need to get in the next two quarters so it is more attainable and specific. This also allows for the evaluation if a goal is realistic or not. If someone would need to get a 100% average for the next two quarters to get an A, that might not be realistic, so they could instead aim to get a 90% average to get a B. 

A good way to think about the mindset that one has about goals is the idea of resolutions vs. intentions. Resolutions are strict, and it means you will completely refrain from doing something or focus very hard on doing something all of the time. However, an intention is a more gentle way of viewing progress. It recognizes that you are trying to improve, but allows for occasional setbacks without feeling like a failure. 

To conclude, the mindset that someone has toward a goal, or more specifically “New Year’s resolution”, has a drastic effect on the probability of success. Do not expect 100% perfection on goals, because nobody is perfect, and should not expect to be perfect with their resolutions. It is important to expect an upward trend when starting a new habit or getting rid of an old one, instead of striving for unrealistic perfection.