How To Develop GOOD New Year's Resolutions

When it comes to resolving to do something during the New Year, it’s safe to say that the bulk of us fall into one of two categories:

A) You believe that New Year’s Resolutions are … nice. They are a formality that everyone does because it’s "what you do." You believe that resolutions hold very little water. They are something people hit full force for the first month (okay, three weeks) of the year and then they are forgotten once life starts getting in the way.

B) You believe that New Year’s Resolutions are great! You think it’s a fantastic opportunity to better yourself and your life. You really believe that when you look back at the end of the year, you’ll see yourself as someone that’s just a little bit better.

Can you guess which one I am? I’m in the latter category. I’m a pretty big resolution maker. I’ve been making them since I was a kid. In the past, I’ve resolved to be a better sister, daughter, girlfriend, and friend. I’ve also resolved to be more organized, less messy, and more in shape.

Do you see a problem with these resolutions?

They aren’t realistic! At all!! They are way too lofty, they lack specificity, and there is no way at the end of the year, I’ll ever be able to tell if I really accomplished anything. You should never, ever make resolutions like these.

I have the secret to developing good resolutions* and I wanted to share. As a pretty staunch optimist, I believe that resolutions are good. I think that the New Year is a great time to start fresh and tackle a new goal. And I think that, if done right, at the end of the year, you can look back and see a lot of personal growth.

So, the secret. It’s simple, really. Resolutions must be three things: observable, attainable, and specific. Otherwise, you’re bound to fail. Here’s the skinny:

Observable. Your resolution must be something you can SEE. If it’s something too grandiose, it’s not that you’ll never accomplish it (necessarily) but you’ll never KNOW if you accomplished it. Please, don’t make a resolution like this:

This year, I will manage my finances better.

I know it looks nice on paper (or on your Facebook wall) but it is soo not something that you can ever really say you’ve accomplished because you can’t observe it. Try this instead:

This year, I will keep $7000 in my savings account.

Now that’s something that, at the end of the year, you’ll be able to tell you accomplished.

Attainable. Resolutions need to be realistic. Here’s an example of an unattainable resolution:

This year, I will be a better daughter.

As someone that’s made this resolution in the past, I don’t even know what it means. An attainable version of that resolution would be something like this:

This year, I will visit my parents at least once a month. 

That’s totally attainable.

Specific. Finally, resolutions must be based on criteria. It must be clear what you are trying to accomplish. Here’s what a resolution looks like with NO criteria:

This year, I will do more yoga. 

How much more? One more class than last year? 100 more classes? Who knows? Here’s a resolution with criteria:

This year, I will go to yoga an average of four times a week (208 classes). 

Doesn’t get any more specific than that.

So there you go – a how-to guide for coming up with New Year’s Resolutions. If you’re interested in seeing my resolutions for the New Year, scroll to the top of this page and click “Resolutions.”




* My logic for developing resolutions stems from same logic involved in developing sound learning objectives, which I learned about in my Training and Development graduate class. The textbook is available here. Thanks, Dr. Beebe.