Happy New Year! How to Make Resolutions Actually Work
Dear Reader,
Today, every blogger and pettifogger is posting a list of recommended New Year’s resolutions.
The world’s oldest journalistic trope rises from the cold mist year after year, until we are left with only one firm resolve: never to read the damn things anymore.
So…
I won’t give you a list of resolutions. I hope you’ve digested the dozens of items I’ve explored in 2015, and perhaps found a few worth pursuing.
(This, I daresay, is a pretty powerful one. As is this. And this. Sorry, couldn’t help myself.)
Instead, I’ll give you some solid advice on how to make whatever resolution you choose actually work.
The point is that resolutions can nearly always be described as “habits I’d like to acquire.” And fortunately, there’s actually good science surrounding how to create a habit that actually sticks.
A 2012 British analysis1 looked at studies that aimed to instill healthful habits in patients. The key, the researchers found, was context. As they put it, habits are:
“Actions that are triggered automatically in response to contextual cues that have been associated with their performance: for example, automatically washing hands (action) after using the toilet (contextual cue), or putting on a seat belt (action) after getting into the car (contextual cue).”
With the crucial role of context in mind, here are the steps the researchers listed to develop a new, healthful habit of any type:
- Decide on a goal that you would like to achieve for your health.
- Choose a simple action that will get you toward your goal which you can do on a daily basis.
- Plan when and where you will do your chosen action. Be consistent: Choose a time and place that you encounter every day of the week.
- Every time you encounter that time and place, do the action.
- It will get easier with time, and within 10 weeks, you should find you are doing it automatically without even having to think about it.
- Congratulations, you’ve made a healthy habit!
An example from my own life…
I was impressed by research that associated smiling with happiness — making yourself smile consistently boosts reported feelings of well-being. I was also persuaded by research about how vital early-morning sun exposure can be to improved mood and health.
Since I always pour myself a big glass of water first thing — I decided to smile broadly and reflect on my good fortune each time I pour and drink that water.
And as I drink and smile, I also stand outside in the full morning sun for at least five minutes.
I’ve done this for five months now. The “pouring trigger” is inextricably linked to smiling and heading outside, and it works wonderfully at raising my mood.
It has become, quite simply, a high point of every day.
I urge you success in whatever habit you choose to acquire. And I look forward to habitually sending along more good information as I find it in 2016!
Best,
Brad Lemley
Citations
- Gardner B, Lally P, Wardle J. Making health habitual: the psychology of ‘habit-formation’ and general practice. Br J Gen Pract. 2012
