With the beginning of the new year, our hopes are reviving, we are trying to create new beginnings, and the market for annual plans is on the rise. Many of us are eager to set a detailed schedule for the year's goals and how to achieve them. These plans on paper seem easy to reach, but are often forgotten in a few months. According to John C. Narcross, professor of psychology at Scranton University, only 10% are committed to the goals they set. But why do people choose the timing of the start of the new year to set new goals and decisions, why do they take it as a starting point for new beginnings? And what's the connection between the beginning of the new year and the plans? The simple answer is the word "new." The New Year represents a sense of change, which makes them feel that this day of 365 days is the right day for change. Although they are not really ready to change anything, they take note of decisions and set goals as a catalyst for change.
Enjoyment and not importance is the primary motivation
In a research on New Year's Resolutions, Kathleen Woley of Cornell University, together with Elit Fischbach of the University of Chicago, found that 55.2% of the new year's decisions related to health (31.3% exercise, 10.4% healthy eating, 13.5% health habits). While 34.4% work (saving 20.8%, debt spending 12.5%, learning something new 0%, regulation 1%). And 5.2% social goals (spend time with family 2.1%, enjoy life 3.1%, help others 0%).
The study found that most participants think that their success in achieving their goals is linked to the importance of the goals and enjoy them. However, researchers found that contrary to this idea, enjoyment is the main incentive to commit to long-term plans, and the belief that we will adhere to a goal because it is important is wrong belief, the presence of gain or pleasure or instant award in his work is one of the most important factors to stimulate more Commitment (2)
In addition, many people set unrealistic goals, which hinders them from committing to their decisions, making them victims of the "false hope syndrome" that makes them unrealistic expectations about the ease and speed of achieving the goals and the consequences. It usually requires acquiring certain behaviors and changing other behaviors. To achieve this, you need to change your thoughts so that this change follows a natural change of your behavior. A large proportion of these behaviors are related to customs, which requires a deep understanding of customs and how they work.
Three steps to change your habits
Habits are conditioned automatic responses, such as washing your teeth when you wake up, changing your clothes when you go home, and changing your habits you need to do this on a scientific basis by following these steps:
Make your steps small . Set large goals that are difficult for you. For example, do not set a goal as wide as exercise, but set a goal you can achieve such as walking every day for half an hour.
For example, I will have a healthy juice after breakfast, or I will apply the skin moisturizing routine after washing my teeth, so breakfast becomes a catalyst for drinking juice, and dental washing is a catalyst for the application of the skin routine.
To create this conditional response and connect the new habit to an old habit you need to make it easier for yourself to practice it together 3 to 7 times a day, so that it is usually automatic . To make it easier for yourself, you can paste a note in an easy place to see or put alerts on your mobile. 4)
Write your own story again
Each of us has an idea of his identity, what he moves and what matters to him. These thoughts are like the story that affects your decisions and actions. Each of us seeks to make decisions that are consistent with his or her own idea or personal story. If you do what is not consistent with your idea about yourself, you will not feel comfortable. . So if you want to change your behavior and stick to these changes, you have to change your personal story or idea about yourself. In his book "Redirecting," Timothy Wilson describes how modifying the story can help change and modify behavior by following these steps:
- Write your current story with a focus on what gives you the achievement of your goals.
- Now on a new page write the story you want to adopt, your thoughts about yourself that you want to change and how you can get to it.
Tips help you stick to your plan and achieve your goals
1. Set realistic goals: set goals you can commit to, practical and realistic goals, and divide the long-term goal into short-term goals. For example, if you want to quit smoking, do not make a decision to stop smoking immediately, but divide your goal into small goals, For example, reduce the number of cigarettes you smoke daily gradually until you reach the final takeoff.
Do not plan to quit smoking, exercise and eat healthy food. At the same time, make your way one step at a time. Whenever you feel you can achieve a goal, go to the next.
Be specific: Make sure your goals are specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time bound. For example, do not set a goal like weight loss, but set a measurable goal like 2 inches of waist circumference.
4. Share with others: Make sure you share some of your friends or close family members in your decisions, and some can use social media for that purpose. Participation will help you as an incentive, as well as support or support.
5. Do not wait for the beginning of the year: You do not need to wait for the beginning of the year to set your goals, start to change at a time when you feel the motivation for change whether it is at the beginning or middle of the year.
6. Reward yourself weekly: You do not need to wait until you have achieved your goal completely, divide your goal for small steps, and continued your progress on a weekly basis, and be keen to set up weekly incentive to help you take more steps towards your goal.
7 - Accept errors: errors part of the experience is inseparable from them, to reach your goal will certainly pass times of weakness or omission, do not feel bad about yourself and do not lose confidence, just pay attention and try to know the factors that led to it to avoid later.
Always remember that you have 365 new start each year, do not despair and do not get frustrated if you can not achieve some of your goals from the first time, try again and try a new way, in the end we are only our attempts and our experiences and our accumulated mistakes.