How to Stick to Your New Year’s Resolutions (And Make 2019 Your Year!)

“New year, new me” is an age-old adage used by many around the world when considering all the good that will come out of the upcoming year. I prefer the saying, “new year, same me”, because I’m essentially the same person I was the years before, as I am today, as I will be in the future. Hopefully, I’ll become wiser as the years pass, but that is beside the point.

Each new year is an opportunity to build new habits and grow as a person. And I know that many people make resolutions to accomplish in the upcoming year, myself included. My New Year’s resolutions include treating my body better (through diet and exercise), improving my relationships with everyone in my life, and building healthy habits (like sleeping at a decent time). Whatever your resolutions may be, there are a couple sure-fire ways of accomplishing your goals and making the most out of your 2019.

1. Manage your time!

   1. I would say that it is important to manage your time because it allows you to live a more organized life and helps you remember all that you need to do. Different types of time-management trackers include using apps like Wunderlist or Todoist, or paper methods like planners and bullet journals. Keeping up with a planner is a good way to keep up with all of your daily tasks, as well as taking note of all that you have accomplished.

2. Track your progress

   1. A helpful tool to keep up with tracking your progress, is a habit tracker. There are many different types of apps for this on the App Store to choose from and you can also create a habit-tracking system in your planner or bullet journal.

3. Find a person to keep you accountable

   1. Another way to fulfill your resolutions is to find an “accountability buddy”, this is a person that you know and trust, that can help keep you motivated and focused on these goals. These people can manifest in many different ways from being workout buddies to therapists; whoever it may be is your choice.

4. Journal

   1. This is a tried and true way of not only taking time to reflect on your day, but to also see your progression. Journaling helps release any pent up emotions from stressful situations and recognize and document happy moments throughout your year. And the great thing about journaling is that at the end of your year, you can flip through to see how your year went.

5. Set limits to accomplish certain goals

   1. Although, like many people, I hate the idea of setting deadlines for myself, I think they are important especially when looking towards achieving a certain end. Based on experience, setting a time for when to accomplish a goal helps with making sure that a task is eventually completed. This doesn’t mean that you have to make an outlandish goal and set a bunch of crazy time limits, but rather you can try to accomplish your resolutions in steps, in order to effectively complete these tasks. You can set reminders for yourself on your phone or in your planner.

All in all, succeeding in fulfilling your New Year’s resolutions can be difficult but if you’re determined and practice perseverance, you should be able to find gladness in your many successes. Don’t feel that you’re obligated to make big goals for yourself either, because as author Jaime Masters said, “success is a series of small wins.”