The new year is approaching which means that it is time to come up with New Year’s resolution ideas.
But this coming year we are going to do things much differently. We aren’t just going to make empty promises to ourselves.
This year, we are going to work on some realistic New Year’s resolution ideas that will make our lives better.
So how do we go about this? How do we stay committed to our New Year’s resolution ideas?
A Simple Guide to Stay Committed to Your New Year’s Resolution Ideas
01Step one: Making realistic resolutions
Your New Year’s resolution ideas must be realistic, and not too broad. This means that they must be doable, in a set period of time.
These New Year’s resolution ideas must also be relevant to you, meaning they are specific to you and your goals and not just some resolution you see in a meme on the internet.
A great example of a realistic goal is ‘I’m going to drink only on weekends or special occasions’, versus ‘I’m not going to drink this year’
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02Step two: Creating a plan to achieve that goal
Once you establish your New Year’s resolution ideas, it is time to plan how to help you achieve that goal. You will need to:
a. Set a timeline
You need to determine when you will start working towards this goal and when you plan to achieve it. You may also set smaller goals along the way to check your progress
b. Prepare yourself for roadblocks
You will need to prepare for roadblocks and obstacles so you can better decide how to deal with them.
c. Create a rewards system for yourself
At the end of this goal, there must be some kind of reward. You may also treat yourself whenever you accomplish the smaller goals in order to keep yourself motivated and focused.
Rewards can range from a chocolate bar or going out for dinner. You may also treat yourself to a spa day or buy yourself some new shoes.
d. Create a punishment system for yourself
If you fail to meet the goal or do something that contradicts the goal, there must be some sort of repercussion.
An example of punishment could be reducing your TV time, or not going out on the weekend. It can also be as small as not getting your favorite ice cream, or simply not benefitting from the reward you set for yourself.
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03Step three: Review progress plan
In order to know if you are meeting your goal in ‘good time’, you will have to review your progress. To do this, you will have to check your progress by observing if you have met your smaller goals within the time period you set for yourself.
For instance, if your resolution is about weight loss, you can check your progress by checking your weight monthly. If your New Year’s resolution is about budgeting, you can check your expenditure over the past week to see if you stuck with your budget.
Now that you know how to tackle your New Year’s resolution ideas, it is time to take a look at some examples of New Year’s resolution ideas that you find easy to stay committed to.
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Examples of New Year’s Resolution Ideas
01Reduce the amount of red meat consumed to once a week
We now know that eating too much red meat is bad for your health. It is more realistic to cut down the amount of red meat eaten weekly, versus cutting it out of a diet completely.
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02Finish [project name] by the end of [Month]
If you are a writer who has delayed finishing you book, or a musician whose album release is way overdue, or even a painter who has yet to finish an art piece, setting a timeline for yourself will surely give you the motivation you will need to finish.
03Take my wife on a date at least once every month
It is no secret that relationships, especially marriages, can get boring if you stop doing the things you used to do when you first got together. To keep things interesting, you can make it a priority to have at least one date night a month.
04Drink one less glass of wine /one less beer everyday
Sometimes casual drinking can become something that happens more often than we want or even realize. Slowly curb your cravings by gradually reducing the amount of alcohol you consume at a time by one or two to help manage your addiction.
photo by Lesha on reshot
05Spend at least an hour alone everyday
If you find that you are very dependent on others, or that you have a hectic lifestyle and wish for some alone time, spending at least an hour alone will help you to find your independence. You can do this by eating lunch alone, going out for a walk by yourself, or just hanging out by yourself for a while
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06Finish reading one book every month
If you love reading but haven’t found time in your busy schedule to do so, setting a goal like this will surely help you to get back on track with your reading.
07Find and commit to a daily skin care routine for clearer skin by summer
This New Year’s resolution idea has daily goals, along with long-term goals.
Photo by Asheesh on reshot
08Cook a new dish once a week
Your New Year’s resolution idea shouldn’t be ‘learn to cook this year.’ It should be actionable like this one.
There are many cookbooks and recipes online and cooking shows you can watch to get inspiration and direction.
09Drink at least 1 liter of water every day
Even though the recommended amount is 8 glasses a day and a liter, only four, people who don’t drink water regularly would find themselves needing the bathroom more often than usual. This goal is more realistic if work your way up from there.
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10Avoid social media for at least an hour before bedtime
Social media addictions are very real and they have many negative side effects. It is not reasonable to say ‘no social media this year’ because that is how we connect with our friends and family and the rest of the world.
Taking one hour away from social media before bed will increase happiness and curb your dependency
Communication with family is important but sometimes life gets in the way of that. This year, you can keep this promise by giving yourself a kind of quota.
12Save $300 a month to invest in stocks
Everyone wants to invest and make money, but this type of resolution is very specific and will allow you to actually achieve that goal by creating small steps to help you reach your goal. Feel free to alter the amount saved and invested based on your income.
Photo by Nina p on reshot
13Finish paying off the car by Thanksgiving
This is a goal with a deadline. You will have to budget properly and reduce expenditure to meet it.
14Try not to smoke more than one pack of cigarettes a day
If you are a hardcore smoker, then you know cutting out smoking completely will be very difficult. This resolution will not only cut down the number of cigarettes you smoke, but it will bring you a step closer to being smoking free.
Photo by Sara F. Pinto on reshot
15Join a community outreach program
To say ‘volunteer more’ would be too broad. This New Year’s resolution idea gives you a target and makes this idea easier to commit to.
Aside from bills, for some of us, the bulk of our money goes towards eating out. A great way to save money and to limit the number of times you eat out is by setting this type of restriction on yourself.
17Go to bed by 11 pm every night (unless it is a special occasion)
Always pulling all-nighters means you end up too tired to function during the day without coffee. You should seriously consider this New Year’s resolution idea for your health. The time can be adjusted to your convenience, just make sure that it is at least 7 hours of sleep.
Photo by infiniteseas photography on reshot
18Renovate/declutter one room every three months
If you keep promising yourself that you will do some home renovation and decorating every year but never find the time to do it, use intervals. This way you don’t have to worry about the entire home being a mess, or taking time off work to get it done.
19Meditate every morning for half an hour
This type of New Year’s resolution has short-term goals that you achieve every day. When you set this type of goal, you train yourself to get into the habit of meditation and in time you will find that the amount of stress in your life will reduce significantly.
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Conclusion
When it comes to New Year’s resolution ideas, you may find that a million and one things are on your mind. However, everything takes time and it is wiser to focus on two or three things at a time to ensure you actually stick to them.
You know how to set realistic New Year’s resolution ideas, how to accomplish them and how to track your progress. So, now it is time to actually act on them. What New Year’s resolution ideas do you have for the new year?
