WEBVTT - Why Are Resolutions So Easy to Break?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to brain stuff from How Stuff Works. Hey, They're

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<v Speaker 1>brain stuff Lauren Vogel bomb here. Thirty percent of us

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<v Speaker 1>who make New Year's resolutions break them by the end

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<v Speaker 1>of January, and beyond that, only of everyone who makes

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<v Speaker 1>a resolution will see it through to completion. Are you

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<v Speaker 1>part of to make resolutions only to find you've given

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<v Speaker 1>up before you ever really got started. Let's break down

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<v Speaker 1>how that happens. One of the most common reasons we

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<v Speaker 1>break our New Year's resolutions is that we get a

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<v Speaker 1>little overzealous when we make them. Basically, we overcommit by

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<v Speaker 1>making too many resolutions, and as a result, forty percent

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<v Speaker 1>of us wind up blaming our busy schedules for our

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<v Speaker 1>lack of follow through. Research shows that it's easier to

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<v Speaker 1>keep just one resolution than several. Another part of the

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<v Speaker 1>problem is that we often make the wrong resolution, or

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<v Speaker 1>more than one wrong resolution is the case, Maybe the

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<v Speaker 1>key to successful goal making is to not be hasty

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<v Speaker 1>when you do it. Make resolutions that you've thought through

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<v Speaker 1>and are willing to dedicate your time and enter. G two.

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<v Speaker 1>Don't make a resolution on the fly after too many

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<v Speaker 1>toasts at a New Year's party. If you're not committed

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<v Speaker 1>to your goal. The odds of staying motivated are not

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<v Speaker 1>in your favor, but hey, who are we kidding? It

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<v Speaker 1>can be difficult to stay motivated even when you've chosen

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<v Speaker 1>a single, well reasoned goal. Many of us lack motivation

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<v Speaker 1>and accountability despite our best intentions. Remove one easy way

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<v Speaker 1>out by sharing your plans with family and friends. The

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<v Speaker 1>more who know your goal, the less likely you'll be

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<v Speaker 1>to talk yourself out of sticking with your new habits.

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<v Speaker 1>And despite what you might have heard, it can take

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<v Speaker 1>longer than just twenty one days for a lot of

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<v Speaker 1>us to change a habit. One so that he found

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<v Speaker 1>it took anywhere between eighteen and two hundred and forty

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<v Speaker 1>five days. Sharing your goals with those close to you

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<v Speaker 1>not only adds accountability, which many of us need to

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<v Speaker 1>motivate ourselves, but also gives you a support system. In

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<v Speaker 1>the end, whether or not we keep our New Year's

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<v Speaker 1>resolutions comes down to whether or not we give ourselves

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<v Speaker 1>a resolution. We can stick to resolutions that are small

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<v Speaker 1>in scope and involves specific and realistic goals, help, especially

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<v Speaker 1>for those of us who make goals like get in shape,

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<v Speaker 1>which is frequently the most made resolution in America. Without

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<v Speaker 1>then planning how will go about achieving that goal. We

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<v Speaker 1>need to be more specific and realistic with ourselves, give

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<v Speaker 1>ourselves deadlines and track our progress. Yes, promising yourself that

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<v Speaker 1>this is the year you'll lose weight is a great goal,

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<v Speaker 1>but how will you do it? More than thirty percent

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<v Speaker 1>of us who make this new year's resolution break it.

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<v Speaker 1>If you want to stack the odds, define what your

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<v Speaker 1>specific weight loss goals are and give yourself a deadline

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<v Speaker 1>within which to meet those goals. Make the goal reasonable

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<v Speaker 1>enough that you're not intimidated by it, and the deadline

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<v Speaker 1>realistic too. Resolved to lose ten pounds by Memorial Day

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<v Speaker 1>and keep yourself honest with weekly progress reports. If you

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<v Speaker 1>want to get in shape, make it your resolution to,

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<v Speaker 1>for instance, always take the stairs. It's a good start.

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<v Speaker 1>Keep a journal of your progress, the good and the bad,

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<v Speaker 1>including those days when you took the elevator because you

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<v Speaker 1>were running late. To help keep yourself focused and on task,

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<v Speaker 1>digital tracking devices can help, but only if you actually

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<v Speaker 1>sit down and look at all that data they collect.

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<v Speaker 1>Progress reports are a good way to keep yourself motivated

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<v Speaker 1>and moving in the right direction towards your goal without them,

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<v Speaker 1>and sometimes despite them, we can become discouraged, and when

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<v Speaker 1>we're discouraged, we tend to give up on the goal.

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<v Speaker 1>But hey, a bit of good news. Our researchers have

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<v Speaker 1>found that a few days off from time to time

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<v Speaker 1>doesn't have much, if any effect on overall success. Instead

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<v Speaker 1>of giving up on your goal when you have a setback,

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<v Speaker 1>take things one day at a time. Researchers are also

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<v Speaker 1>examining a phenomenon called decision fatigue that plays a part

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<v Speaker 1>in how likely we are to keep resolutions. The more decisions,

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<v Speaker 1>even small ones, that you have to make in a day,

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<v Speaker 1>including deciding to go for a walk or run, selecting

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<v Speaker 1>healthy foods, and putting away cash for a rainy day,

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<v Speaker 1>the more depleted your willpower and self control will be

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<v Speaker 1>as the day wears on. So think about how you

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<v Speaker 1>can incorporate small steps to your goal in your daily

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<v Speaker 1>life so they'll be automatic and require little or no

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<v Speaker 1>decision effort. Making tough decisions related to your resolution early

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<v Speaker 1>in the day, for example, get your workout in earlier,

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<v Speaker 1>pay bills and handle finances before you leave work could

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<v Speaker 1>help and share a successful outcome. Today's episode was written

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<v Speaker 1>by Maria Tremarchi and produced by Tristan McNeil. By the way,

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<v Speaker 1>if you're listening on the day this publishes Happy New Year,

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<v Speaker 1>and of course, for lots more on this and other

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<v Speaker 1>psychological topics, visit our home planet, how Stuff Works dot

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<v Speaker 1>com m HM