"New year, new you" is a phrase we hear often when one year ends and another one begins. As natural goal-setters here at Silk + Sonder, we understand the urge to make changes that will help you live your life in a way that's aligned with your core values. Our motto is "new month, new you," after all.
We're not big on New Year's resolutions, but setting goals for the new year can be a helpful, enriching exercise. The problem? Most people have a hard time sticking to the New Year's resolutions and goals they set for themselves.
According to research, on average, only between 9 and 12% of people keep their New Year's Resolutions, and around 30% of people have given up on their resolution within two weeks. Want to defy the odds? We've got you covered with these tips.
1. Make A Vision Board
Vision boards can be aesthetically-pleasing addition to your bedroom or workspace, and they can also go a long way when it comes to achieving your goals. When you're constantly looking at a visual manifestation of your dreams, you'll be more likely to take subconscious actions that help you move toward achieving your goals.
For example, if you're constantly looking at a photo of a place you've always wanted to travel, you'll be more likely to save your money and look into taking time off of work so you can make this dream into a reality.
These days, people like to make Pinterest vision boards. While you certainly can do this—has there ever been an easier way to make a vision board?—just make sure you're looking at it regularly, or it won't work.
2. Make Sure Goals Are Specific
"Save money" is a popular New Year's goal or resolution, but it isn't very concrete, is it? If you want to actually stick to the goal you set for yourself, it's important to be as specific as possible. So, if you want to save money this year, make sure you have an exact number in your head of how much you want to save.
Understanding why you have a specific goal is important, too. So if you want to save money, why do you want to save money? Is it so you can buy a home you love? Leave your job to pursue something you've always wanted to do? Travel somewhere exciting? It's a lot easier to follow through on a difficult goal if you have a thorough understanding of your reason for pursuing it.
3. Make A Plan
Once your goal is specific and you understand why you're chasing it, make a plan for how you'll achieve it. For example, if your goal is to "make more time for self-care," write down exactly how you'll make this happen.
First, you might want to figure out exactly what self-care means to you, and why it's so important that you bring it into your life more. Once you do that, plan out exactly how you'll bring self-care into your life more. Will you practice self-care once a week? Once a month? Will you track it somewhere, and give yourself a little reward once you follow through with it? The more detailed your plan, the better.
Making a plan can make it a lot easier to follow through with New Year's goals.
4. Use A Habit Tracker
Silk + Sonder users swear by habit trackers as a way to break bad habits and stick to new and better ones. While you don't have to use our habit tracker, tracking your habits somewhere can be an excellent way to stick to your goals this year.
You can think of habit trackers as a little reward system—every day that you follow through with your habit, you get a gold star.
5. Find Accountability Buddies
Do your friends and family members know what goals you've set for yourself this year? If not, it's time to get them on board as soon as possible. Pick one person you trust, or a few people, and let them know what goals you've set for yourself this year.
The simple act of telling them about these goals creates automatic accountability, but if you want to take it a step further, you can create an accountability system where you check in with each other regularly to make sure you're staying on track.
6. Don't Let Perfect Be The Enemy Of Good
One of the top reasons why people fail at achieving their goals is because they give up as soon as they have one day, or moment, when they don't follow through. If your goal is to eat healthier this year and you have one day in January where you forget to eat vegetables and eat a slice of cake, who cares? You can try again tomorrow.
When you don't let perfect be the enemy of good, you'll be a lot more likely to have longterm success in achieving your goals.
While sticking to your goals is hard work, it will be worth it when you look back on your year on December 31 and realize just how much worked out for you—and then you'll have an even stronger foundation to build on. Good luck!
Want more great blog posts? Give these ones a read:
- 60 Monthly Journaling Prompts to Help You Make The Most Of 2023
- 61 New Year Quotes For 2023
- 23 New Year Intention Ideas For 2023