January Is Over, How Are Those New Year's Resolutions Going?

It's officially the second month of the year, and those who made New Year's resolutions are a full 31 days into their new routines. Or, are they?

According to research conducted by the University of Scranton, 46 percent of people who made New Year's resolutions have abandoned their goals already, and 25 percent abandoned them weeks ago – within the first seven days of January.

The numbers of resolute Resolutioners dwindle exponentially as the pages of the calendar turn; 54 percent have abandoned their goals after six months, and a total of 92 percent by the end of December, just in time to start the process all over.

In other words, only 8 percent of people who outline New Year's resolutions will meet their goals by the year's end.

Source: Statistic Brain Research Institute

Popular New Year's Resolutions And Generational Stats

more than half of the people who make New Year's resolutions set financially-related goals. While the theme of money appears across all generations, specific goals do appear more often among Millennials than Sandwichers, for example. As explained by Time, "When it comes to making resolutions, millennials' youthful optimism shines through […] [M]illennials overall (ages 18 to 34) are the most concerned with spending less and saving money. This age group will likely have lower incomes than those older than them, as well as less experience managing money, so the need to budget and save is apparent. This also reflects the high priority millennials place on savings and financial responsibility."

Source: Money, Time Magazine.

According to Talk.edu, the following resolutions appear year-after-year as popular goals:

• Make Small Investments
• Save Money
• Improve Finances
• Get Out Of Debt
• Start A Business
• Get/Change A Job
• Reduce Stress

Why Do People Fail?

There are many reasons New Year's resolutions rarely stick. However, for each reason, there is a course of action to help you maintain your gumption, or, to re-instill your vigor if you're among those 46 percent of Americans who have already lost motivation.

Habits Are Hard: Not that forming new habits is such an arduous task, but reverting back to old habits is so darn easy. Change your way of thinking about "new" and "old" habits and you'll quickly see how your "new" habit of running three times a week is not really a brand new concept, but a substitute for your deeply-engrained not-running-three-times-a-week habit.

We Love To Romanticize: As humans, we like to exaggerate, and we like to shoot high. Lofty goals are called that for a reason; they're not easily within reach. Unfortunately, these types of life-changing resolutions take time, effort and dedication. The bigger the goal, the more involved it becomes and the more you have to actually work to achieve it.Likewise, is your "I just need to lose 10 pounds" actually 10 pounds, or is it more like 25 pounds? It's just human nature to make ourselves come off better than we are, even if it's just being dishonest with ourselves.

We're Lazy:

It's been pounded into our every thinking that exercise is hard, getting organized is hard, being a proper housekeeper is hard. Just watch a few commercials selling the newest diet pills or Tupperware or vacuum – none of these ads makes the work look easy, fun or even minimally rewarding.

So, regardless of whether you have given up on your New Year's resolutions or if your dedication is still desperately hanging on by a thread, look at these three potential pitfalls and place them within the context of your own goals.

For example, looking at the Talk.edu list, here are a few alternative ways of viewing these goals:

• Make Small Investments: Look into
• Save Money: Set a specific goal to put $5, $10, $15 aside each week.
• Improve Finances: Each month of the year, do something to make your financial situation more well-rounded, such as locating all of your bills and placing them in one designated area, outlining a bill paying schedule, reaching out to a financial advisor, scheduling a financial counseling session or setting up a savings account.
• Get Out Of Debt: Make specific goals toward that end, like paying down a specific credit card.
• Start A Business: Again, make tangible, smaller-goals that will help make the larger goal a reality. Look into the different licensing options within your city and state.
• Get/Change A Job: Make small steps each week to meet these larger goals. Look at the classified and web-based job sites. Update your resume. Start making "feeler" phone calls and emails.
• Reduce Stress: With broad resolutions, it's essential to make specific, smaller goals to meet these life changes. Set five minutes aside each day to meditate. Or, put your phone away while eating. Little steps, when done consistently, can make big changes.

From there, look for the silver linings; recognize that we don't often set ourselves up for success, but that's okay. We are animals of habit. In order to make changes become a reality, we have to be honest with ourselves and rev up our motivation to overcome our downsides. For each negative thought, exaggeration or excuse, we need to remember that reinventing ourselves is going to take time and effort, but there was a reason we initially made those resolutions and that motivating spark did not magically disappear with our dwindling enthusiasm. Don't give up.Image Credit: Public Domain