New Resolutions For 2025 Or Goals?

New Resolutions for 2025 - exactly what comes to mind when we start a new year. There's something about setting them that makes us hopeful - until a few weeks into 2025, when we quickly lose the motivation to keep up with the resolutions and forget what we actually wanted to achieve. But why? Isn't it natural to have a few 2025 resolutions in our minds?

Well, the problem is that at the heart of the phrase "New Year's resolutions" is change - to do more sport, lose weight, start a business, save money, get a promotion - and the preamble of change might tell our brains that we are not good enough as we are ("a new year, a new me"). But hang on: isn't it a good thing that we want to change? Yes, but change takes time and effort. We all want to become better, but there's a fine line between working to grow and not feeling good enough as you are.

According to U.S. News & World Report, 80% of New Year's resolutions fail by February. So why do resolutions, essentially healthy intentions, fail to stick? Read on to find out why resolutions don't work most of the time (and why those 2024 resolutions didn't work either) and what you could do instead.

Why do most people struggle with resolutions?

The wrong resolution

Well, in many cases, the resolutions we set ourselves aren't actually what we're interested in. Do you want to start a business? Or maybe simply to take up the sport? A new hobby? We often set resolutions that we think will make us feel more fulfilled, successful, or confident. But the reality is quite different. It's up to us how we feel.

We are not always in control

Even if our resolutions are truly rooted in what we want, things often don't go according to plan because of outside influences. Resolutions that are based on destination instead of intention are doomed to fail. If, for example, you set out to start a business but realize that you don't have the necessary funds, you will feel that you have failed because you haven't achieved your goal instead of feeling proud that you may have started working on a business plan for the first time, you have outlined it, you have a clear idea and direction.

Alternatives to New Year's resolutions

1. Reflecting on the previous year

Consider achievements, challenges, and lessons learned. This can help us understand where we have been and where we want to get to. Once we know what we want to do, we immediately get to work and write it down to move on to the next point.