How to make your resolutions stick
And live an intentional year
Happy Friday, Intentionalists!
The new year is a great time to make resolutions. You’ve had a chance to pause and reflect over the holiday season and you’ve got a timeline of 12 months ahead to make your dreams come true.
But for a whole host of biological reasons, our brains and bodies are wired to change only if our survival depends on it. That’s why when we try to make even positive adjustments, we come up against such strong mental and physical resistance that we often give up.
People who succeed in making significant changes quickly have usually had a fire set under them:
Their doctor has told them unless they make significant changes to their health habits, they will not see the year out, or;
Their boss has threatened to dismiss them if they don’t lift their performance
The strong motivation to change overrides their natural resistance.
For the rest of us, the fact that we are comfortable and not in imminent danger is a disadvantage when it comes to changing behaviours and habits.
But not following through on promises we make to ourselves destroys our self-trust and sense of efficacy. So today we are sharing tips to help you follow through on your resolutions, so by the end of this year you will be standing on the winner’s podium and feeling like a champion!
Grab your pen and journal and let’s get started.
PROMPTS
1. TEND TO YOUR MENTAL HEALTH AND MINDSET FIRST
It’s hard to achieve goals when you are struggling with chronic stress, anxiety, a lack of confidence or a sense of unworthiness. The foundation of all change should be to tend to your mental health and mindset first.
Look at the list below:
Walk in nature (unplugged from technology)
Meditation
Exercise
Journalling
7-8 hours quality sleep
Positive affirmations
Writing a morning gratitude list
Watching or listening to a comedy program
Playing with your animal companion
A bear hug with someone you love
Circle one activity from the list that you don’t currently do regularly and make it your new daily habit for 2025.
2. WHAT IS YOUR RESOLUTION FOR 2025?
If you have more than one, write them down in order of priority.
3. MAKE SURE YOUR RESOLUTION IS SPECIFIC
A resolution like ‘I want to spend more time with my partner’ is noble but doesn’t give you a clear target to aim for. ‘To go on a date night every Wednesday and a holiday together in September’ is both specific and measurable.
Write down each of your resolutions in specific terms
4. HAVE A CLEAR MENTAL PICTURE OF YOUR RESOLUTION
Why do you want to achieve this resolution?
How is it going to benefit your life and the lives of those you love?
What is it going to feel like once you have achieved your goal?
Write down this description in three or four sentences on a card. Leave it on your bedside table and read it to yourself first thing in the morning and last thing at night. This sends a message to your subconscious mind, which will then constantly look for ways to fulfil the goal.
Hint: If a photograph says a thousand words to you, use a photograph for the above exercise instead.
5. USE THE POWER OF MARGINAL GAINS
One of the most powerful ways to override your natural resistance to change is to make the gains so small that your brain and body barely notice that you are making them. For instance, if you want to start eating a healthy plant-based diet, start by switching from one meat-based meal a week to a plant-based one. Then the next week make it two and keep going from there.
Write down how you will apply the power of marginal gains to your resolutions
6. USE WHAT YOU’VE GOT AND BUILD ONTO EXISTING HABITS
We don’t always have to reinvent the wheel when it comes to the resources we need to fulfil our current year’s resolutions. It’s very likely that your cupboards and bookshelves are full of items you bought but haven’t taken advantage of yet. For example, an unfinished online course on your computer, the book on investing you bought last year, or a pair of dumbbells in the garage, etc
Write down any resources you have that you can use to assist with this year’s resolutions.
Building on current habits is also an efficient way to fulfil your resolutions. For instance, say you are currently walking 30 minutes a day for your cardio health, but your goal this year is to build muscle strength. Despite that, you just never seem to be able to get to the gym. You could build on your daily walking habit instead – you could add hills and stairs to your walking route, carry hand weights or do twenty minutes of strength exercises when you get home, and take advantage of the fact that your body is warmed up and you are already wearing exercise clothes.
What are some activities that you are currently doing that you could add onto to fulfil your resolutions?
7. TRACK YOUR PROGRESS
Tracking your progress will keep you motivated, help you establish new habits, and identify areas that need improvement.
You can use:
A productivity app
A spreadsheet
A journal, or;
Mark your progress on a calendar
Write down what tool you are going to use to keep track of your progress.
If you follow our above suggestions, we have every confidence that you will nail your resolutions this year!
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AFFIRMATIONS
I am disciplined and determined
I am capable of achieving my dreams
I move closer to my goals step by step
(Say or write each affirmation slowly and mindfully ten times)
KELLY’S SILLY BIT
Did you sing Auld Lang Syne on New Year's Eve? Or are you looking at those three words next to each other squinting and trying to make them make sense?
Beautifully, it's a song that has been sung and passed down over time and in 1788, poet Robert Burns decided to write it down.
Auld Lang Syne roughly translates as for old times' sake. It's a song sung at midnight about nostalgia, looking back over the past year and celebrating friendships.
Did you know that in 1999 while the world trembled about what the Y2K bug was going to do to us all, Kenny G thought he'd rip out this banger on his saxophone and release it? His ditty reached number 7 in the American Charts making it the oldest-written song to make the Hot 100 charts (at that time).
Or maybe you ate 12 grapes at each stroke of midnight, for good luck? That’s 12 grapes for each month of the year and it's meant to bring the grape gobbler great luck. With each grape, you make a wish for each month but I hope you had them ALL eaten by 12.01 or the wishes won’t come true … and also you might choke.
I jest but it's a lovely Spanish tradition. Everyone tunes in to the Campanadas en la Puerta de Sol, broadcast live from Madrid (see video below), to know when to eat the grapes.
Seedless grapes are all the go and sell out in Spain on New Year’s Eve. Smart.
If you were in Denmark, you smashed plates. Some will have gone to their besties’ houses to smash crockery on their doorstep. The more shards you find the next day, the luckier you are!
In Ireland, you may have slipped some mistletoe under your pillow, in the hopes of dreaming of your future partner.
Or in Greece, you may have hung up bundles of Onion above your door inviting in good luck (onions are a symbol of prosperity). Best of all, on New Year’s Day, parents will wake their sleepy children and welcome them into a New Year with a gentle bonk to their head with said onions. Genuis.
Be an intentionalist.
Belinda & Kelly XX
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