New Year's Resolutions That are Easy to Stick to!

As tradition goes, people simply can not enter the new year without having a set of -often unattainable- goals, that they’re determined to make happen by the end of the year. And with the new year just around the corner, everyone is keeping busy with their thorough and well-thought-out lists of new year’s resolutions. But have we considered if people actually stick to those resolutions, and if so, then how?

New year’s resolutions often vary from simple things like making your bed every morning to lifelong dreams you’ve always wanted to achieve like travelling the world on a budget. This is typically why people do not stick to their resolutions, they’re either too simple that they end up forgotten or too complicated that they become impossible to accomplish. 

In efforts to have a more productive new year, we’re coming up with a list of new year’s resolutions that are actually easy to stick to, what a concept, right? But before we dive into this list, let us first delve into the ways in which you can stick to your resolutions!

Ways to Stick to Your New Year’s Resolutions

This year, our main goal when setting our resolutions is knowing we can stick to them. With the help of the following tips, this shall be an easy feat! To both make a list of resolutions and actually stick to them is everyone’s dream, and we’re trying to help make that a reality! 

1. Be Prepared in Advance

Listen, not because it’s a new year’s resolution then you have to start planning for it very last-minute. Whenever you encounter something you want to do more or less of, a new habit to acquire or one to forgo, you should start adding it to your list! And who knows? You might even stick to it and accomplish it earlier than expected!  

2. Start Small and Work Your Way up

Do not overwhelm yourself with big resolutions, the smaller you start, the higher chance you have of actually sticking to your resolutions. Set small goals and make small steps towards achieving them, the less you feel obligated to do the work, the easier it will be. 

3. Make a Plan 

A plan is the perfect starting point for tackling your new year’s resolutions. Your plan does not have to be detailed and factor in everything you do on a daily or weekly basis. A plan should instead be adaptable, and you should be able to adjust it as you go. Instead of making a plan to stick to the resolution, make a plan to try and get there in your own time, this way it’s easier and way more attainable.

4. Challenge Yourself

Make it fun! Set small challenges for yourself and reward yourself whenever you achieve any of them. A little reward system is a great way to motivate yourself to actually stick to your new year’s resolutions. Every time you complete a challenge or a step towards your resolution being fulfilled, you get a small reward, and so on. So not only are you making progress, but you’re also having fun and getting something out of it! 

5. Focus on a Single Resolution at a Time

Since not everyone sticks to a small resolution list and instead overwhelms themselves with too many resolutions at a time, focusing on one thing at a time is really important. Choose a single resolution from your list and dedicate your time and energy to it, and once you’re done, move on to the next one. This ensures that you’ll at least stick to one or two resolutions, which is better than starting multiple ones and not seeing them through to the end. 

6. Track Your Progress

Make sure you record all your progress! Check your list of resolutions and see how far you are from achieving them. Keep a notebook where you document the process of sticking to your resolutions. Whenever you make any progress, however small, record it. This allows you to see how far you’ve come and motivates you to do more, no accomplishment is too small! 

7. Partner with a Friend

This process will be more fun if you include a friend! Partnering with a friend is a great way to motivate yourself to stick to your resolutions. Whenever one of you is lacking, the other could motivate them. Spark some friendly competition, set goals, make rewards, and make this fun for both of you! 

8. Believe in Yourself

As cliché as this one might sound, it is important. Dedicating yourself to a goal is not doable without the belief that you can actually achieve it. Similarly, your efforts to stick to your new year’s resolutions are not feeble without you believing in yourself and in your ability to get them done or at least try. 

9. Learn from Last Year’s Mistakes

Learning from your mistakes is yet another cliché but essential piece of advice. Reflect on your resolutions from the previous years, see how many of them you achieved, and if you missed any of them, check on why. Everything you did wrong before can act as a guide for the things you should avoid moving forward. Your mistakes can and will help you actually stick to your resolutions this year! 

10. Keep on Trying

Do not give up! No matter how hard it might become or how challenging the process gets, keep on trying! The more you try, the more you’ll be pleased with yourself, because at the end of the day, even if you don’t get to your goal, at least you tried, and that’s something! 

New Year’s Resolutions That Are Easy to Stick to

With the previous tips in mind, here are some resolutions that are actually easy to stick to and accomplish by the end of the year. 

1. Be more Mindful 

Being more mindful, or practising mindfulness, basically means that you get to live in the moment and be grateful for it. Committing to mindfulness and being thankful for what you have can actually help you become a better person. And the best part is that it’s so easy to do! 

2. Read more Books

This one is almost always on our lists, and we never actually get to do it. Not this year, though. This time around we’re focusing on consuming books, not just reading them. You can listen to audiobooks, read discussions and summaries, join book clubs and hear people’s opinions on certain books, or even watch the movie adaptation. Whichever way you choose to consume a book counts as a success!

3. Join a Club

As a student, you can sometimes find it extra hard to stick to resolutions, especially if your schedule happens to be on the busier side. This is why joining a club should be on your list of resolutions this year. Clubs are easily found on campus and their timings tend to perfectly align with your schedule, thus allowing you to have a social life and stick to your resolution all at once.

4. Get a Plant

Getting a plant is a great addition to your list of resolutions! Not only are you positively contributing to the environment, brightening up your space, and caring for a living thing, but you’re also easily checking a resolution off of the list. We recommend getting a Cactus, they’re easy to care for and tend to have a long life span, so you’ll have a companion for a while! 

5. Take the Stairs Every Once in a While

This is also another easy one to stick to. All you have to do is skip the elevator every now and then, consider it out of order and just hop on those stairs. This is not just about staying in shape or being fit, it’s about exercising your muscles and improving your mood. As far as new year’s resolutions go, this one is pretty easy to check off your list at the end of the year. 

6. Learn a New Skill

This one also makes a lot of lists every year but does anyone end up with any new skills by the end of the year? Well, to make this resolution easy to stick to, you need to pick a skill that is actually easy to learn. Start small, remember? So here are some skills to try learning this year: 

• Knitting

• Cycling

• Embroidery 

• Baking

• Colouring

7. Get in The Kitchen More

This is a pretty vague one as you don’t exactly specify why you’re in the kitchen more, but here are a few ideas of things to occupy yourself with in the kitchen that are easy to check off your list of resolutions: 

• Bake a cake

• Cook a new meal

• Meal-prep for the week

• Wash the dishes 

• Rearrange your spice cabinets

• Make healthier meals

8. Drink More Water

Again, another easy one that is on the list every year! Staying hydrated is important and also easily achievable. All you need to do to check this one off your list is keep a bottle of water on hand at all times, so you remember to drink more water. Whenever the bottle is empty, you’ll find yourself automatically refilling it and so on. This way, you lead a healthier lifestyle and also stick to one of your resolutions!

9. Get Offline More

In this day and age, we’re often glued to our phones and tend to be online more than we should be. This is why a lot of people make spending less time online one of their new year’s resolutions. While this one may be harder than other resolutions to stick it, it is still doable. All you need to do is train yourself, spend a couple of minutes less on your phone every day, and by the end of the year, you’ll have trained yourself to stay less on your phone and actually enjoy the moment.

10. Make More Playlists

This is more of a fun resolution that anything else, and is also really easy to stick to, especially if you’re a fan of music! Making playlists is a fun activity to do alone or with friends. You can make playlists for specific moods or specific occasions, you can also make playlists as gifts for your friends or loved ones! This resolution can be easily accomplished and it also brings you joy, what a treat! 

11. Support Local Businesses

In efforts to remain more conscious about your purchases and who you support, this should definitely be on your list of resolutions for the new year! Whatever items you usually buy or consume from big brand names or retail stores, there’s an alternative for them at a local business! Supporting local businesses helps you contribute more to the local economy and the community you’re in, and is also easy to check off your list!

12. Stay in Touch

Talk to your friends more, call your parents more often, text that one classmate that helped you with an assignment, and visit your neighbours; staying in touch can take many shapes and forms, but the important thing is to stay connected and check on the people in your circle! This is another resolution that should not be hard to stick to, we believe in you! 

13. Try Thrifting

In efforts to become more environmentally friendly and also save more money, thrifting should be something you try this year! Thrift and secondhand stores can be found almost everywhere nowadays and you can easily go in and grab your favourite items! You can find unique pieces of clothing, antique decorations for your room, furniture, and much more! 

14. Dedicate More Time to Yourself

When making new year’s resolutions, we often forget to include a little something for ourselves, this year it’s about to change! On the list this year, you should include a resolution to dedicate more time for yourself; enjoy your own company, watch a movie, take a nap, do some facials, invest in some self-care products, visit a friend, go on a field trip, or basically anything that brings you joy! Try doing this as much as you can, and it should be pretty easy to stick to as we often find ourselves in need of a self-care day!

15. Make a New Friend

Expanding your circle of friends should be on the list this year! Befriend someone from class, talk to the person on the treadmill next to you at the gym, chat up that person who’s reading the same book as you at the library, there are so many ways to make a new friend and you should definitely try at least one! Your new friend can also be a pet, so go to a shelter, and adopt yourself a kitten or a puppy or even a bird! 

This year, our main goal is to avoid resolutions that people usually never stick to, and instead, focus on easier, more attainable resolutions that we’ll actually stick to by the end of the year. So, with this list of resolutions and how to stick to them in mind, you should be able to successfully get through your list of resolutions for this year, have a wonderful one! 

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the top 5 new year’s resolutions?

Here are some of the new year’s resolutions that make it to the top five list: 

• Exercise more

• Lose weight

• Get organised

• Quit smoking

• Learn a new skill or hobby

• Save more money

How do you make a New Year's resolution and stick to it?

Here are a few tips to make a new year’s resolution and stick to it: 

• Start with small goals

• Make it measurable 

• Be realistic 

• Make a plan

• Stay positive

What are the 3 most common reasons why New Year's resolutions fail?

Some of the reasons why new year’s resolutions fail include: 

• Lack of accountability

• No tracking 

• Lack of planning