New Year, Same You

The Problem with Resolutions and How to Actually Achieve your Goals

Our researcher Dr Matt Iasiello and Dr Naomi Kakoschke from CSIRO discussed reliable ways to set consistent habits for achievable goal setting in 2025 and the common pitfalls that let us down when it comes to goal setting and New Year’s resolutions. Read on for a summary of what was discussed, catch the full conversation from the Researching Happy⁠ podcast here.

Ever heard the phrase “New year, new me”? When January arrives, many of us reflect on the improvements we want to make and set our New Year’s resolutions. The start of a new year feels like a fresh chapter, a chance to become a better version of ourselves. We convince ourselves that this year will be different: we’ll run a marathon, quit drinking, eat healthier, practice mindfulness, read every night, and quit social media.

The problem is New Year’s resolutions often don’t work. In fact, by mid-January, most resolutions are abandoned, and only about 8% of people actually achieve their resolutions. Why is this? Let’s explore why resolutions typically don’t stick and how to set more achievable goals while harnessing self-compassion for when we hit inevitable setbacks.

January: The Fresh Start Effect

In January, many of us are just coming out of from an indulgent December, perhaps having made unhealthy choices like eating too many mince pies or drinking too much. We might be feeling a bit tired and sluggish and therefore feel more motivated to adopt healthier habits in the New Year. We see this surge in motivation everywhere; with our local gyms suddenly swarming with people.

We also feel like we’re starting a clean slate when we hit January and that we can leave behind setbacks or challenges we faced before. This is a phenomenon called the Fresh start effect. With the fresh start effect in play, we feel capable, and motivated, and picture our future selves who are capable of achieving our goals. In reality, we haven’t actually changed much over night from December 31^st to January 1^st, and the same difficulties previously faced probably haven’t completely gone away, but it feels good for us to think we’ve changed, and that this is a fresh start.

A common pitfall is focusing on WHAT, Not HOW

So, with the surge in motivation in January, and the idea of a ‘fresh start’, we tend to make ambitious resolutions that are often vague, broad and to be honest, unrealistic.

Some of the most common resolutions are things like:

• Eat healthier
• Improve fitness
• Lose weight
• Drink less alcohol
• Quit smoking

These goals usually aim at becoming a “better” or healthier version of ourselves. While it’s great to have these ambitions and reflect on areas which could do with some changes, resolutions often emphasise WHAT we want to achieve, neglecting the crucial aspect of HOW to accomplish it, and the myriad of little changes and steps behind these ambitious goals.

Behaviour is driven by HABIT not just desire  

Motivation and aspirations alone aren’t reliable indicators of success. Sometimes we might think that not achieving our resolutions means we that didn’t want it enough. Often what we find, though, is that we still have the same goals, such as the desire to be healthier, even if we didn’t follow through. Motivation fluctuates all the time. Throughout the seasons of the year (lowest around mid-winter), and even throughout the day (often higher in the morning and waning by evening).

Our behaviours are driven by habit rather than just by our desires.

Acknowledging that our motivation will change, we can focus on building habits to achieve our goals, rather than relying solely on motivation.

Take the example of brushing your teeth

Do you ever skip brushing your teeth because you can’t be bothered or had a bad day?

Probably not.

This habit is so cemented into your routine that it doesn’t waiver, and that even if your circumstances have changed, you’ll still be brushing your teeth.

How to Set Goals That Stick

We’ve discussed some of the problems with resolutions and where people can experience setbacks and lose motivation. Let’s discuss how to set goals that can be maintained with the example of a wanting to read more.

Start Small and Be Specific

Define what you want to achieve and what’s involved. For example, I’m going to read 5 pages of my book. Choose something small and achievable to start off with and build up from there and ensure you have the skills and capabilities you need. If someone’s goal was to run a marathon, but they have never run more than 2k, they don’t have the skills yet and they will need to work up slowly. An achievable first step then would be to run 2 km and slowly build up (2.5 k, 3 k, etc).

What we often find is when people make small and achievable goals, they often exceed it, doing more than they set out to, like reading an entire chapter of the book. This can be super motivating, as we feel good about ourselves and capable, and we want to keep going.

Swap your new habit for an old one

It can be helpful to replace a new habit with an unwanted one. For example, we might wish to replace scrolling on social media with reading five pages. This avoids additional time and energy, which are barriers to working on our goals. It can be helpful to add your new habit to something you already do, we call this ‘habit stacking’. So maybe you brush your teeth at night (an existing habit), and straight after this you can do your reading. When we stack habits, they feel easier and more predictable, increasing the likeliness we will do them.

Managing Triggers: The Self-Control Dilemma

As humans, we often struggle with self-control and naturally go for the easiest options. This is not a shortcoming of you – it’s a fact of our biology, and a lot of things in our environment are designed to be addictive (hello, smart phones). If there’s something enticing in our environment, chances are we will reach for it. Whether that’s our phone on our desk, or a chocolate biscuit on the counter.

Recognising this, we can aim to remove triggers to give us the best chance to do what we planned. For example, putting your phone in a draw or another room when you plan to read. We can also make it easier by having our book placed on our beds or by our beds, so all you need to do is grab it and start reading.

Be Consistent and Repeat

Keep practicing – it takes a little while for our habits to form, but by being consistent and repetition will  eventually make them  automatic and part of your routine.

Reward Yourself

Giving yourself a reward can be super motivating. After completing a goal step, make sure you treat yourself, such as watching a favourite show after reading, telling a loved one what you’ve achieved, ticking it off on paper, or mentally thanking yourself. Pairing new habits with enjoyable activities, is also a great idea. For example, you want to walk more, you could combine this with listening to your favourite album or podcast. If you look forward to your goal, you’ll be much more likely to do it.

You can help to achieve your goals by confiding your wishes and any barriers to a close person and / or by recording your progress on paper, or an app. This could help you see that your small steps are leading to a bigger picture.

Overall, reducing barriers and increasing ease is key to achieving your goals.

Be mindful

We spend a lot of time on autopilot, often moving through our days mindlessly. Try to recognise your actions, distractions and temptations. Awareness can be key in making decisions that align with your goals and values.

Setbacks WILL happen

It’s important we recognise that it isn’t always going to be smooth sailing trying to achieve your goals. Life is unpredictable, and obstacles are normal and should be expected. Just because you’ve fallen off the horse doesn’t mean you can’t brush off and get back on. A lapse doesn’t mean failure.

Adopt a compassionate mindset, learn from mistakes, and adjust your plan. Read more about how to harness self-compassion here.

Summary

We’ve discussed why resolutions don’t always work and how to set practical and achievable goals which are more likely to succeed.

We are all doing our best and there can be many barriers to us being the person we want to be. We hope this blog has helped suggest some practical ways you can work towards your personal goals and achieve what you wish to in 2025, while being kind to yourself if it doesn’t go to plan.

We wish you a very happy new year and a wonderful 2025.

“It is almost certain you will have a setback at some point – have that sneaky cigarette or two, choose sugary drinks and a burger for lunch – what is important is that you see it as a lapse and not a failure.”Professor Elaine Fox

Resources

Watch the Podcast here.

Habit Tracker.

Healthy Habits Quiz.

Dr Naomi’s CSIRO Profile.