Tips and tricks to try out this new year to avoid underdelivering on your goals
Illustration by Sage Blackwell.
Year after year the clock strikes midnight, and we pledge to reinvent, rebrand, and rebuild. While I applaud our optimism and belief in ourselves, we tend to fall short of our expectations as the year wears on. A new year brings a clean slate to try again, but many of us are doing it wrong.
This year, I encourage you to try different strategies in implementing new year resolutions to make them stick.
Make fewer goals
When you set goals, it is natural to want to check every box: mental health, physical health, academics, career, relationships, etc. But this is unreasonable and unachievable. If you give yourself too many things to focus on, most of them are bound to slip through the cracks. Instead, narrow your list down to two to four big goals that reflect what you really want to change. Having fewer resolutions will help you avoid spreading yourself too thin, and give you the time and energy you need to achieve them.
Break up bigger goals into smaller ones
Big goals can feel daunting. To get around this roadblock, take one of your big goals — for example, quitting drinking by the end of 2026 — and break it up into a number of smaller, more achievable goals. You could try, as an example, to first cut out a certain type of alcohol, such as hard liquors. Next, continuously reduce the number of days per week you consume any kind of alcohol, until eventually you can cut it out completely. This makes a seemingly impossible goal easier to approach, and therefore to achieve.
Create a plan and a timeline
Setting an abstract goal — such as getting into shape — leaves room for error. Simply setting the goal isn’t enough; you have to make a plan for how you’re going to achieve the goal, and a timeline to keep yourself on track. For example, what kind of exercise do you want to do? Yoga? Weight lifting? Cardio?
Next, commit to doing that exercise a certain number of times weekly. If you want to take this further, consider habits that will affect your exercise performance, such as sleep, nutrition, stress, etc., and plan to align those with your goals. Finally, create a timeline. If you try to go from little or no exercise to working out five times a week, you may be taking on too much too fast, and become discouraged. But, if you create small changes over time, it will be easier to achieve your goal.
Put progress ahead of perfection
It’s easy to focus on achieving your goal to perfection, which forms an ‘all or nothing’ mindset. When you put too much emphasis on perfection, you can lose sight of achieving the goal at all.
Remind yourself that you’re human, and bound to make mistakes along the way, or fall behind. For example, if your goal is to lose 12 pounds by the end of 2026, you may aim to lose one pound a month. However, if the weigh-in comes around and you haven’t quite met that goal, remember that change is a journey and continue to do your best, rather than allowing setbacks to slow you down or cause you to quit completely.
Don’t give up on the first sign of failure
Similarly, don’t allow failure to stop you. Failing is a normal, and even an important part of success, that should be embraced. Rather than letting failure stop you, take it as an opportunity to reflect on where you went wrong and come up with new strategies to avoid it next time. After all, failure is what helps us grow.
Track your progress
Losing sight of the progress you’ve made in the shadow of your overall goal is common. But it’s key to keep track of your progress to regularly remind yourself how far you’ve come. For example, if you set a goal to read 50 books by the end of 2026, it may feel discouraging to see that you have only read five by March. However, five books is still an achievement — and much better than zero. Though the 45 books you have left may feel daunting, reminding yourself of the progress you’ve made will encourage you and be useful in mapping the rest of your journey.
Celebrate your achievements
Finally, I encourage you to celebrate your achievements — no matter how big or small. Recognizing and honouring the work that you’ve put in and the progress that you’ve made will incentivize you to keep going. Try to set up a reward system in advance — for example, if you’re trying to save $10 000 in 2026, you could try treating yourself to a small gift under $30 for every $1000 you save. This way, achieving your goal becomes easier, and more enjoyable.
