Research shows that only 8% of people who make New Year's resolutions actually achieve them, according to a study from the University of Scranton compiled by Statistic Brain. This high failure rate is partly due to the unrealistic nature of many resolutions, as people often aim to become 'a completely different person' overnight, says psychotherapist Rachel Weinstein, co-director of the Adulting School in Portland, Maine.
Timothy Pychyl, associate professor of psychology at Carleton University in Canada, notes that resolutions inherently contain 'failure and procrastination'. He explains that delaying the start of a goal until 1 January is a form of 'culturally-prescribed procrastination', which makes it harder to follow through. Instead, he advises starting as soon as possible, such as buying running shoes and going on short runs before committing to a marathon.
Another common pitfall is announcing resolutions too early. Pychyl's research indicates that sharing goals can provide a premature sense of accomplishment, reducing motivation to actually achieve them. 'Present self-wins, future self-losses,' he says. To increase success, experts recommend setting small, manageable goals that can be scaled up over time, like adding an extra gym session per week if you already exercise twice.
Psychologist Joseph Luciani warns that repeated failure can leave people feeling discouraged, making it harder to set new goals later. He advises against 'hollow intentions' and suggests focusing on incremental changes rather than drastic transformations. Ultimately, the key to keeping resolutions is to start early, keep goals realistic, and avoid seeking validation from others before making progress.
