What I think about my chances of keeping a resolution
If you were expecting to read about some grand New Year’s resolution, you won’t find it here! The last one I made, which was decades ago, was to stop making any. I can’t be trusted with a resolution — something always comes along to help me break it. Allison Basile, a psychotherapist in Brunswick, might tell me it’s because my resolutions were only wishes.
“To simply have a desire to change does not mean you are ready to change,” says Allison. “Resolutions are wishes and may not be rooted in a willingness to alter behaviors that are comfortable or comforting.”
I just took a moment to see what I wrote about resolutions last year. It turns out I actually made one to exercise my brain more. I forgot all about it, which means I either didn’t keep the resolution, or I need to start worrying about my memory. I think I won’t start worrying now. It’s New Year’s Eve and I only want to enjoy myself.
Before I go, I found some interesting statistics about New Year’s resolutions that you might enjoy.
| Rank | Top 10 New Years resolutions for 2012 |
|
1
|
Lose Weight |
|
2
|
Getting Organized |
|
3
|
Spend Less, Save More |
|
4
|
Enjoy Life to the Fullest |
|
5
|
Staying Fit and Healthy |
|
6
|
Learn Something Exciting |
|
7
|
Quit Smoking |
|
8
|
Help Others in Their Dreams |
|
9
|
Fall in Love |
|
10
|
Spend More Time with Family |
| News Years Resolution Statistics | Data |
| Percent of Americans who usually make New Year’s Resolutions | 45% |
| Percent of Americans who infrequently make New Year’s Resolutions | 17% |
| Percent of Americans who absolutely never make New Year’s Resolutions | 38% |
| Percent of people who are successful in achieving their resolution | 8% |
| Percent who have infrequent success | 49% |
| Percent who never succeed and fail on their resolution each year | 24% |
| People who explicitly make resolutions are 10 times more likely to attain their goals than people who don’t explicitly make resolutions | |
| Type of Resolutions (Percent above 100% because of multiple resolutions) | Data |
| Self Improvement or education related resolutions | 47% |
| Weight related resolutions | 38% |
| Money related resolutions | 34% |
| Relationship related resolutions | 31% |
| Age Success Rates | Data |
| Percent of people in their twenties who achieve their resolution each year | 39% |
| Percent of people over 50 who achieve their resolution each year | 14% |
| Length of Resolutions | Data |
| Resolution maintained through first week | 75% |
| Past two weeks | 71% |
| Past one month | 64% |
| Past six months | 46% |
Source: University of Scranton. Journal of Clinical Psychology. Published: 12.13.2012
I hope you have a wonderful and happy start to the New Year. If you made any resolutions, I wish you success!
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