Tired of New Year’s Resolutions That Always Fail? Make Habits that Last!
Look behind you! Can you see 2022 waving goodbye in the rearview mirror? Well, it is. Because no matter how long you look back at it, it will continue to get farther and farther away…
But fear not! The new year has come at last and with every new year comes new intentions and new opportunities. New Year’s brings a new you!
As every year passes, we naturally desire to get better - to improve, to balance our lives, and to grow. With time comes knowledge, which is the driving force behind this natural desire to improve ourselves. We’ve learned more about the world and now it’s time to put what we’ve learned into action; we want to be better!
What do you want to be different in the new year? Or, as it’s more commonly asked, “What New Year’s resolutions are you making?”
Pause. Rewind!
What do you want to be different in the new year? Or, as it should be asked, “What habits do you want to change?”
Do you see what I did there? I think without me even explaining the reason I altered the question, your intuition probably knows why.
Approximately 80% of New Year’s resolutions fail… by February!
Do you ever wonder why New Year’s resolutions fail? Why is it so hard to make a change you know is good? Part of understanding why resolutions fail is learning a little bit about habits.
What Is A Habit?
A habit is a “usual manner of behavior” or “acquired mode of behavior.” It’s often something you do without even thinking. Habits form in time as we repeat a behavior over and over. At first, our actions are intentionally repeated steps. Eventually, they become second nature and hardly require conscious thought!
To get a really detailed look at what habits are and how they’re formed, I’d highly recommend two books to you: “Atomic Habits” by James Clear and “The Power of Habit” by Charles Duhigg. For now, I’ll just give you an overview of habits and why they’re so powerful.
Habits are made up of a few different components:
Cues
Cravings
Routines / Responses
Rewards
Think of a habit as a series of events. First, you are presented with a cue. You might see it, hear it, smell it, or taste it. Whatever it is, it cues your brain to begin craving a certain stimulus. This craving starts to drive your brain and body toward a routine or response. You respond to the craving to satisfy your brain’s desire. And after you respond, you receive the reward your brain was seeking.
Habits are so powerful because you satisfy a deep desire. Your brain wanted something to take place and, when it did, it lit up like a Christmas tree and shouted “joy to the world!”
Creating new habits is so much more effective than creating a list of resolutions because your brain is taught to want the change. Once you effectively create good habits, you can achieve so much more than you ever thought possible!
How Habits Are Different From Resolutions
Think about the definition of a habit as we’ve just discussed above. Focus on the “manner/mode of behavior” piece. Do you see a key difference between a habit and a resolution?
A resolution is usually a one-time goal, whereas a habit is a regularly occurring process - a mode of behavior.
We often create resolutions that sound like, “I’m going to lose weight” or “I’m going to save money.” Those are admirable goals, certainly, but there are a couple of problems:
These goals don’t address practical steps. You have a goal you want to achieve - a destination - but where’s the map? How are you going to get there? In order to achieve your goal, you need to have practical steps or actions you can take.
These goals don’t address the difficulties you face. Perhaps you intuitively came up with some small steps to take, or maybe you even got really specific. What happens when you hit a roadblock? You wanted to save money, but your coworkers wanted to go out this weekend. You don’t want to say no and seem like the buzzkill…
These goals are things you can finish. And when something is finished (like 2022) it ends up in your rearview mirror, remember? You didn’t really just want to lose 10 pounds and move on. You wanted to be healthy and keep the weight off!
These problems are a few major reasons why resolutions don’t work, just to name a few. When you create good habits, you can overcome these issues!
How To Create Good Habits
Creating good habits can feel overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be. All you really have to do is outsmart your brain and start using the habit cycle discussed above.
First, recognize your cues. Know what makes your brain tick. Maybe you’re working at the office and you see an ad online for a new project management software. Your current software has been working just fine, but this new app has all the pretty efficient dashboards you’ve always wanted.
The problem is… it’s a bit more expensive. You click to buy and you’re spending $50 more per month than you needed to. Recognize the cues that kickstart bad habits.
Next, understand the craving. What is it, deep down, that your brain wants to satisfy? Did you buy the new software out of fear you may be missing out? Knowing the answer to this question can help you understand why you respond the way you do.
Third comes the routine or response. This is the action you take to satisfy the craving. You had resolved to not make impulsive decisions like that again, but you did it anyway. Old habits die hard… But let’s move forward and reflect on what you could have done differently to satisfy the same craving without spending the money. Answering this question will allow you to create new habits that align with who you want to be.
Now that you’ve chosen a new response, you can get the same reward without the woe. New habit acquired!
Let Financial Fitness Coaching Help You Build Financial Habits That Make a Lasting Difference
At Financial Fitness Coaching we don’t work with clients to make resolutions. Why? Because we don’t just want to help you change. We do it! When you partner with us, we will work together to take advantage of the power of good habits and help you and your business thrive financially.
To see how we can help you and your business create exceptional financial habits for 2023, send an email to info@financialfitnesscoaching or simply schedule a free 20-minute Discovery Call on our calendar.