It’s that time of year again when the phrase ‘New Year’s resolutions’ will be thrown around. Everyone is happy that the working year is drawing to a close and the festive season is upon us. With a new year, there is great potential for new beginnings so it’s easy to see why people decide that this is the perfect time to work on something new for themselves. For example, Love Me Love You Founder and CEO Lance Picioane would like to spend more time with his son in 2017, but is refraining from labelling this as a New Year’s resolution.
Despite the optimism and motivational boosts experienced early on in a year, data from Finder shows that 58% of Australians did not keep their New Year’s resolutions in 2015. Given the likelihood that a New Year’s resolution won’t be kept, it may be best not to make one. New Year’s resolutions may have negative effects on mental health, so here’s a few reasons why there’s no need to have a New Year’s resolution going into 2017.
It can create unnecessary disappointment
15% of Australians weren’t successful in achieving their New Year’s resolutions because they forgot about them. But those that genuinely work hard and don’t simply forget may face disappointment if they can’t be successful. If you fear that you might be let down, try not to focus on something that may be out of reach. Disappointment will be heightened if something is built up in your head. You don’t need feelings of failure to set a negative tone for the remainder of the year.
You don’t need extra stress
While having a New Year’s resolution gives you something to focus on, it may also bring extra stress that you don’t need to deal with. One in four Australians said that they didn’t achieve their resolution because they weren’t able to keep track of their progress. This is particularly true since 54% of New Year’s resolutions are centred on health and fitness. Along with working on your goal, monitoring progress takes a significant amount of time and energy as well and the stress that comes with that will not be good for you. It might not be worth it longer term.
Keep focus on other things
It’s not healthy to be fixated on a goal to the point where it overtakes other elements of your life. You don’t want a resolution to be all consuming where you lose focus of other things that are important to you, especially if you don’t achieve the result you were after. Our actions should be aligned with our life audit, which are not only holistic but focus on changing behaviors that can be instilled throughout life.
There are things that are more important than a New Year’s resolution, such as taking care of your mental health, so don’t think that you have to achieve things within a one year period. It’s okay to have balance where you go about your usual activities and slowly achieve the things you want.
The most popular New Year’s resolutions in 2016 were health and fitness related, so if this is on the cards for this year, don’t set resolutions around particular figures.
For example, I want to lose 10kg is not a healthy resolution to have, whereas wanting to increase your physical activity and getting more fruit and vegetables in your diet is a healthier resolution and a lot more achievable.
You’re already good enough
The saying ‘there’s always room for improvement’ is true, but you shouldn’t make a New Year’s resolution because you don’t feel you’re good enough already. If you are seeking self-improvement, there are plenty of other ways to work on yourself without having the ‘new year, new me’ attitude attached.
A resolution we should all practice a little more is to be kinder to ourselves, and those around us. If you do want to make some changes, you don’t have to wait for the New Year to do them. Avoid the hype and try to be the best version of yourself everyday of the year.
