Pure psyche: With this trick you can keep your New Year's resolutions

Created: 12/27/2022 10:03 am

Good resolutions for the new year are usually quickly abandoned.

It is not that difficult to comply with the correct formulation.

Hamburg – At the turn of the year, good resolutions are just as important as fireworks, a glass of sparkling wine and "Dinner for One".

These resolutions are rarely kept until the next New Year's Eve.

Instead, goals such as "More sport", "Less stress" and "Healthier nutrition" are often shelved after just a few weeks or months and people return to everyday life, reports 24hamburg.de.   

But there are ways and means to integrate good resolutions into everyday life long after the New Year has passed.

The trick is surprising: the biggest difference is the wording of the goals.

Good resolutions: What the Germans plan for the new year

In theory, you can set goals for new habits throughout the year.

Nevertheless, it is a recurring trend that the break in a new calendar year causes people to rethink their lives and to make good resolutions for New Year's Eve, which is still celebrated on Sylt, for example, with a ban on firecrackers.

The Germans are no exception.

According to a 2019 survey by the DAK, which was conducted with over 3,500 participants, at least 37 percent are setting new goals for the coming year.

However, only about half remain steadfast in pursuing these goals even after several months.

The most popular resolutions of the DAK customers surveyed were to avoid stress (62 percent), spend more time with family and friends (60 percent), exercise more and do more sport (57 percent), more time for themselves plan to do it yourself (51 percent), eat healthier (49 percent) and lose weight (34 percent).

Germans also like to make professional resolutions for the new year.

Formulate goals positively: Better to encourage than forbid

It's certainly not a new phenomenon that people are much more fascinated by things that are forbidden than by things that are allowed anyway.

The same principle can be applied to New Year's resolutions.

According to a study by the Swedish Universities of Stockholm and Linköpin, the wording of New Year's goals makes a big difference.

also read

Citizens' allowance, child benefit and pension: What will change completely in 2023 - and what you absolutely need to know about it

READ

Food trend winter barbecues: simple, delicious, unforgettable

READ

Supermarket employees speak plain language: Which sentences totally annoy us - "You hear it 100 times a day"

READ

Price per kilo 3000 euros!

Customer shakes her head: "As long as there is THAT in the supermarket, we don't have too little money in Germany"

READ

Saving heating costs and electricity with aluminum foil: home remedies are a real secret trick

READ

Fancy a voyage of discovery?

My space

New resolutions for 2023 should be formulated positively - this way you are more likely to keep them.

(24hamburg.de montage) © IMAGO Images/Christian Ohde & DPA/Arno Burgi

For the study, 1066 volunteer participants who made good resolutions at the turn of the year 2017/2018 were divided into three groups.

One of the three groups was left alone with the resolutions, the second received a little support, and the third group received a great deal of help through constant contact and reminders.

However, the support hardly played a role in meeting the goals; according to the scientists, the formulation of the resolutions was much more important.

In practice, so-called “approach targets” led to greater success.

These were goals in which something new should be integrated into everyday life, for example sporting activities.

Goals with bans, on the other hand, were realized less often.

Keeping good intentions: How to formulate positive goals

So the trick to good intentions is to encourage new habits and eliminate negative wording from the goals.

So instead of “I will stop being unhealthy and avoid sweets”, write “I will start jogging and eat vegetables at least three times a week” on your New Year’s note.

According to RND, psychologist Sonia Lippke from Jacobs University in Bremen said about this phenomenon: “'Losing weight' is not a good goal, but 'getting fitter' is.

The study showed that well: It is easier to do something than not to do it.” Creating alternatives is also an important part of the formulation.

Instead of "I don't eat sweets" you should rather consider the alternative "I eat more fruit".

Keep good resolutions: Always be realistic and forgiving

Another trick to meeting New Year's goals: plan, but don't radically.

If you plan to do something for the new year, for example to do more sport and get fitter, you should draw up a realistic plan.

The keyword here is “realistic”, because anyone who decides to go jogging for two hours every day from now on will probably fail.

24hamburg.de newsletter

In the 24hamburg.de newsletter, our editors put together content from Hamburg, Northern Germany and HSV.

Every day at 8:30 a.m., six current articles land in your e-mail inbox - registration is free of charge, you can easily unsubscribe by clicking at the end of each sent newsletter issue.

Instead, you should act according to the so-called WOOP method, which stands for “Wish”, “Outcome” (result), “Obstacle” (obstacle) and “Plan”.

Think about what you want to achieve and what you need to do to get it.

But plan for obstacles - such as illness or bad weather in the jogging example - and make your plans accordingly realistic, patient and with consideration for yourself.

If you plan for a few setbacks in advance, you won't immediately lose all motivation and give up as soon as an obstacle arises.