New Year’s Resolutions – Why This Should Be Your Last (except possibly one)

Everyone makes them. Apparently fewer keep them. So why do New Year’s Resolutions continue to be so popular? Here’s an argument that proposes they should become a thing of the past.

In 2015, the UK’s Bupa surveyed more than 2,000 people and discovered that 56 per cent of the respondents failed to keep their resolutions. The most popular reasons for their lack of success were losing motivation or commitment to achieving their goal.

This finding is supported by a US study reported in the Journal of Clinical Psychology which found that around half of resolution makers give up within six months. Even more discouraging is the fact that only 8 percent were still succeeding 12 months later.

Let’s step aside and look at the most popular subjects for these annual promises to ourselves. Again, these results come from a US study, but there’s no reason to think that Australians would differ much in this respect.

Number one in the failed promises stakes should come as no surprise – it’s to lose weight or eat a healthier diet. Number two relates to life improvements and self-improvements, followed closely by making better financial decisions at number three.

As this is a business and career focussed spot, we’ll skip four to ten which, for the curious, relate to family, friends, love, health, study and good deeds.

At number eleven we come to ‘Find a better job”.

Across the general population, surprisingly few resolutions relate to work and career choices – I’ll bet that if you’re reading this, you’re one of a group that would be much more likely to include work-oriented topics. But there’s no reason to think that the success rate would be any different.

So, what does all this tell us? It suggests that for most people, making resolutions is a waste of time. For many it’s worse, the self-recriminations and disappointment of not being able to keep a resolution can negatively affect motivation and the desire to achieve life goals.

However, I am not suggesting that you, or anyone, gives up on wanting to improve themselves or their career position. Simply that New Year’s Resolutions are a demonstrably unreliable way of doing it.

Behavioural change requires planning, a strategy and structure – as well as time and consideration of a whole range of factors – and it is one of the goals that executive coaching is designed to achieve. 

With January 1st approaching fast, now’s the time to put that impending resolution back in your pocket and drop me a line to discover how executive coaching can drive positive change for you, more successfully and effectively. 

You’ll find me at melinda@melindafellconsulting.com.au - and yes, I will be checking emails on New Year’s Day – just in case you make contacting me your resolution. It’s the only one I’m prepared to recommend.