Ah, New Year’s resolution season is upon us, and this is such an interesting topic, especially coming from a social scientist perspective, because you see so many people just like glomming on to like certain statistics about New Year’s resolutions, which We will get into some legitimate statistics because there are so many out there that I think people are just, like, making up and taking and running with them at this point.

Like, the whole 80 percent of people don’t actually stick to their New Year’s resolutions. So, like, why do them anyway? And it’s more important to just set goals year round and blah blah blah blah blah. And we’re, we’re gonna get into all of that. And I really, Did my due diligence for y’all. I spent a lot of time, like, an embarrassing amount of time sifting through all of the different papers and research and like, what is actually out there and trying to get some numbers that are legitimate for you all.

Um, So this episode is, is pretty beefy from a research perspective. We’re going to walk through a lot of different studies, so strap in my friends. Resolution season is here, and resolutions are very prevalent. It is something that a lot of people And according to a survey actually conducted by the American Psychological Association, the old APA, about 40 percent of Americans make New Year’s resolutions every year.

I don’t know, maybe that sounds low to you. Maybe it’s more than you thought. But Evidently, this number has been pretty consistent over the years. So, what’s interesting again is, and I just, I so badly just want everyone to become better critical thinkers. And, although it may seem like New Year’s Resolution stuff is everywhere, maybe that’s just the bubble that you found yourself in on social media or whatever.

And, success rates is another really, really big thing. big thing that people talk about. And it’s, it’s almost like there’s this divide, right? Should you set them? Because what’s the point? Because most people Don’t follow through with them anyway, and research actually indicates that around 8 to 20 percent of people are successful in achieving their New Year’s resolutions.

So that feels kind of low, right? Um, a study published in the Journal of Clinical Psychology found that while 77 percent of people maintain their resolutions for at least a week, only about 19 percent are successful after two years. So that’s where that like. 8 to 20 percent kind of comes into play. So, yeah, if we’re looking at these numbers.

8 20 percent of people not successfully maintaining, that doesn’t sound super promising, right? As far as persistence goes beyond a week or up to two years, research from the University of Scranton suggests that while many people abandon their resolutions by mid February, those who are able to maintain their commitment often report higher levels of satisfaction and well being.

So that’s an interesting thing to kind of throw into the mix, that although not everyone is successful in maintaining their resolutions, just like not everyone is successful in maintaining any goal at any time of the year, the people that do It’s really beneficial for them, psychologically. So, my argument here is, although, sure, these numbers aren’t anything to write home about, I don’t think we should be discouraging people from setting New Year’s resolutions.

Because here’s the other thing. If 40 percent of Americans are setting New Year’s resolutions and for whatever reason, not whatever reason, we’re going to get into the reason, there is a reason, more people are setting goals during this specific time of year, and then sure, only a subset of those people are actually successful, I still think that probably means that there are more people setting and achieving goals.

because of New Year’s resolutions than any other time of year. So maybe let’s not discourage people from setting goals and going after them, especially if ultimately it is going to help people. Right? At least that’s my argument. And when I think of New Year’s resolutions, I think about the fresh start effect, and temporal landmarks, not necessarily failure.

If you’re going into your New Year’s resolution, And you’re assuming you’re going to fail and you’re looking at these numbers and you’re going, what’s the point anyway? But I guess I’ll try. Honey, you’re not going to be successful. And that’s, you know, speaking from a mindset perspective, if you’re going into anything thinking, this isn’t going to work for me, the chances of it working for you are slim.

So my goal with this episode is to talk through all of the reasons why it actually May be worth your time, worth your client’s time, if you’re a health and fitness coach. And why I really think we need to stop with the bashing of New Year’s resolutions. So, I mentioned fresh start effect and I mentioned temporal landmarks.

And a little bit ago I was saying how, for whatever reason, people want to set so many, like, more goals during this time of year. And it’s not whatever reason. The reason is temporal landmarks. It’s these really important periods of time. In our lives, it could be the first of the year, it could be a birthday, it could be the start of a month, the start of a week, something.

Those are actually really powerful times to be setting goals. And the fresh start effect, which we will also get into, is this concept that when we feel like we have a clean slate, We are more motivated and more likely to go after and achieve our goals. So, to me, I’m like, New Year’s resolutions, this seems like kind of a good idea.

And although not everyone is successful, doesn’t mean that you won’t be. And doesn’t mean that we should be discouraging them. So, What the research shows on New Year’s Resolutions and kind of getting into the psychology behind it, we’re going to talk about why it really is such a popular time to set goals and talk about the fresh start effect and temporal landmarks specifically in supporting that.

So, temporal landmarks. This is something that I want you to see as like, it’s not just a New Year’s resolution thing, but the first of the year is such a big landmark in time. So it makes a lot of sense to discuss it here, and I have a few different studies I want to run through with you. Specifically how temporal landmarks relate to time, identity, and motivation.

So, these significant dates or events essentially signal a psychological clean slate, if you will. And, because of that, they increase motivation to change. So the studies here essentially highlight how these landmarks allow people to psychologically separate their past, and often their like imperfect selves in the past, from the present and the future, which then leads to Like a heightened sense of optimism for what’s to come so they can use these moments, these temporal landmarks to disconnect from past failures and embrace a new narrative that’s to come, which just sounds so nice, doesn’t it?

So, okay, this first study from 1994, so we’re going back, but it still rings true. It’s very, very true. So this research explored how temporal landmarks are used to organize personal events and memories. And in this research, they highlighted how humans naturally use time related markers like birthdays, anniversaries.

So we just kind of tend to do this as humans already. And this process of, of doing this is, has a, has a name. It’s called cognitive structuring. So the landmarks in time provide. cognitive structure, which then can essentially enhance the perception of control and agency over your goals, which you’ve heard me talk about control before as sort of a mechanism of safety for us psychologically.

So if we feel like we have kind of control over our timelines, we feel a little bit more safe. And typically when we’re in places of safety, we’re, we’re able to operate at our best, right? So. With New Year’s Resolutions, the start of the year is a prime example of how people mentally reorganize their time and associate that with fresh goals and new life phases.

And this really clearly gives a point to why New Year’s Resolutions, I am going to trip over this word so many times, New Year’s Resolutions, are such a common tradition, why this has been going on for as long as it has. So this, this research was specifically looking at like why do we set New Year’s resolutions and because of temporal landmarks, helping us with this cognitive structuring and giving us a sense of control gives us a sense of hope and like a sense of control and a sense of hope for what’s to come in the future.

The next study I have is tying temporal landmarks to identity. And. I think it’s, it’s no secret how important identity is when we’re looking to strive for new goals, adjust who we are as a person, obviously your identity, so it’s so intimately intertwined, who we think we are is very much kind of lays the foundation for what’s to come and what we feel like we’re capable of doing.

So the key findings from this study explored how people use temporal landmarks to reimagine their identity and align their goals with an improved sense of self. So new beginnings provide an opportunity to reframe one’s identity, which can then lead to more ambitious goal setting and self improvement efforts.

So Because of this new year kind of clean slate effect and we’re able to use cognitive structuring to say that was me in the past and now this is me going forward. It gives us sort of a chance to determine what we want our identity to be going forward. And when we have that chance and we’re taking sort of this, like, pause, this pause point in our lives to say, Who do I want to be and what do I want to achieve?

Again, gives us this sense of, like, optimism and, like, belief for, like, what’s possible in the future now that we’re saying the past is the past and we’re only looking ahead. So, This kind of identity piece is related to something called self continuity, and temporal landmarks can disrupt self continuity, meaning that people can separate their past failures from their future potential, and this is one reason why people Choose to set resolutions during the new year to improve their health, their productivity, their relationships, things that are so, again, intimately tied to their identity.

So we get to disrupt this like natural, more like automatic pattern of like I am who I am on a day-to-day basis. And when a new year comes around, we get to reevaluate that. So we get to essentially. Throw, um, throw a wrench into our typical, like, continuous self, if that makes sense. Okay, and the last one, last study I have on temporal landmarks specifically is related to motivation.

So, in this study, they, the researchers explored how temporal landmarks increase motivation by enhancing the salience of personal goals. So, just, like, making them more clear. And aware and like we’re just those goals are like hitting us in the face during this time, whereas any other day of the year, we may be like, Oh, yeah, that’s something I’d like to do one day, right?

So this study showed that people are more likely to set ambitious goals and feel motivated to pursue them after temporal landmarks like the new year. And the research showed that people view their future selves more favorably after. a temporal landmark. So this boost in something called self appraisal, so they see themselves as in a better light, essentially, often leads them to set higher goals and be more ambitious than they would be at any other time of the year.

Or, you know, we are talking about New Year’s resolutions here, but it doesn’t necessarily need to be January 1st. This could be a different type of temporal landmark, but I think we can all agree that the start of a new year has like, A whole new level of that, like, yes, you have birthdays. Yes, you have starts of the month, starts of season, quarter one, two, three, four, whatever, and those can all work well as temporal landmarks, but the new year has like a heightened heightened sense of it.

So. This research also shows like the implications overall for goal pursuit. So while motivation does increase after these landmarks and like, doesn’t all of this just sound so good? Like after a temporal landmark that we’re seeing like, okay, after January 1st, I feel so much better about myself going forward.

I have so many more ambitious goals. I feel so good about what’s to come. I feel more motivated. That doesn’t mean that that motivation maintains forever, right? And you may have already been thinking this, like, yeah, that all sounds great. And everybody has this sense of hope at the beginning of the year, but what happens February, March, April, May, et cetera.

So what these researchers were essentially like cautioning against that this optimism that’s associated with the fresh start may fade. If individuals don’t plan for sustained effort. So that brings us to kind of the next section of this episode and why resolutions fail. And obviously, we can again understand that everyone’s super excited to get started, but how do we keep them going?

So, most resolutions fail. Because of timing, lack of specific planning, or loss of motivation. Those are like the big three. 35 percent of people cite loss of motivation as the primary reason for quitting, while 19 percent report being too busy, and 18 percent say that they’ve changed their goals. Which, we don’t know, if you change your goals, maybe now you’re more likely to achieve them, because you’ve like, understood where the necessary adjustments need to be.

So what we’re seeing here is that this fresh start effect tends to wear off as the year progresses, which is why, you know, we even hear people talking about, oh, yeah, well, by February, most people have dropped off from their goals. So yeah, this is not It’s very encouraging. It’s like we want to be excited, but like, can we really get that excited if it doesn’t last?

The real reason here is an obvious lack of behavior change and mindset support, right? It is, it feels so good and it’s so exciting to set new goals, but what comes after that decision to do something is what matters most. So lucky for you, this whole freaking podcast is chock full of tons of behavior change and mindset strategies that you can put into place.

And we’re going to talk more about some specific research backed strategies now. Just know that there are So many. There’s so much you can do to support yourself and to support your clients beyond that happy feeling at the beginning of the year of like, I can’t wait to achieve my goals. Yes, we want to harness that.

We want to harness the optimism and the excitement and then take it many steps further to make sure it keeps going. I am willing to bet, willing to bet, that the 8 to 20 percent of people that are successfully maintaining their goals for months to years down the line. They are using some of these behavior change strategies.

Alright, so how do we maintain motivation beyond the fresh start effect? So the first one I have, how many do I have here? One, two, three, four, five, five ish. And there’s like, there’s like five A, B, C. 3A, B, C, um, but mostly, yeah, about five. So the first one is to set approach oriented goals rather than avoidance goals.

And this is something I talk about, um, when discussing like the Smarter Goal Framework, which I believe is episode 13, we’ll make sure that that is linked in the show notes for you guys too, that we want to be setting goals that are Additive is how I, that’s the word that I use to describe it, like how can we add something to our lives.

So at the most basic level we could say that. We should be encouraging more exercise rather than stop eating junk food. So, how can we turn these goals into something that feels like they’re more additive rather than like taking something away? The next thing is to make resolutions specific and measurable.

Again, this is, Part of my Smarter goal framework as well. So rather than having just kind of like vague nonspecific goals, we want to get really, really clear on them and also make sure that they are something that we can measure over time. So I have some research here on goal setting theory that highlights.

that specific, challenging goals tend to lead to higher performance compared to vague or easy goals. So something like, I want to be healthier, that’s too general to sustain motivation. Whereas something like, I’m going to go to the gym three times per week, that’s more concrete, more motivating. And this works because Specificity allows for better planning and measuring of progress over time, while challenging goals create a sense of accomplishment alongside of it.

So we’re kind of increasing confidence and motivation by not just choosing super easy goals or super vague goals. Number three is to track progress and celebrate small wins. So I have some research here that shows people are most motivated when they perceive they’re making progress, even if the steps are small.

So regularly tracking your progress can make you feel like you’re, And there’s a, there’s a lot out there, especially in the health and fitness space when it comes to weight loss and how it can maybe be seen as unhealthy to weigh yourself every day and being like paying attention to that. The flip flip side of this argument is if you.

aren’t paying attention to your progress and you’re not tracking it, it’s not measurable, when are you ever actually going to know that you are making progress? And it can feel pretty defeating if you don’t have any idea of where you’re at. So track progress, celebrate wins along the way. And with the small wins, This, this works, and I know so many of you listening to this are probably like, duh Casey, of course we need to like celebrate small wins, but just know that small wins work because they create positive reinforcement and make the larger goal seem even more attainable.

So every time you have a small win, you’re going, I am one step closer, and this can prevent feelings of discouragement and just generally keep the momentum going. So if you’re a coach and you’re listening to this. Make sure you are not just celebrating small wins, right? You’re not just going to your clients and saying, Oh my God, good job, look at where you’re at.

Um, but you’re making it really clear how far along the way they are. This is something I teach inside the Health Mindset Coaching Certification. And how you can say, like, okay, where you’re at, whether it’s weight loss, or how many days they’ve been consistently going to the gym, or whatever. Make it really tangible.

And make it clear that, okay, so based on how consistent you’ve been, based on the amount of weight you’ve lost or whatever, you know, insert small win here, that means you’re pretty much like 25 percent of the way to your, your main long term outcome goal. Isn’t that awesome? So helping them really see that they’re like tangibly making progress.

And make that known to them. Alright, number four is social accountability. Like, big surprise, the people in your life matter, right? Share your goals with others, find accountability partners, use tracking apps to measure progress. Accountability is important. So, as much as we want to have the conversation of like, you should just be able to motivate yourself and hold yourself accountable.

It’s not really how humans work. We can do that, and I’m sure all of you that are listening do this, and you do hold yourselves accountable in a lot of ways, but getting social accountability kind of takes it to the next level, which is really great because that means all of you that are coaches, everything that you do is essentially a research backed strategy to help your clients Maintain and stick to their goals because you are the social accountability for them.

So, some studies that I have listed here, kind of rounded up, suggest that social support, both in the form of encouragement and accountability, enhance goal achievement. So, sharing your goals with others or having an accountability partner can help you stay on track. So, we do have research to support the importance of this.

All right, number five is to focus on resilience and expect setbacks. I probably find a way to talk about this stuff in some capacity in almost every single episode. Just like the importance of expecting things to get hard and focusing on learning from failure and embracing challenge and all of the things and how this so heavily comes back to your mindset, growth mindset specifically.

And even successful goal setters experience Multiple slip ups, but the emphasis remains on persistence, so please keep that in mind, and please reiterate this to your clients that the people who are successful in hitting their goals have slip ups, have mistakes, have setbacks, have failures, run into obstacles, see challenge around every corner, the people who are successful, Have those things.

It’s almost like being successful requires those things. And a couple big things that come along with all of this is mental contrasting and a growth mindset. So I’m not going to get really heavily into mental contrasting here because I actually, the previous episode to this is on the WHOOP method, which is essentially mental contrasting turned into a specific strategy.

So please go listen to that episode on the WHOOP method. And I talk. pretty much non stop about growth mindset. And Carol Dweck, who I’m sure I’ve mentioned in the podcast. I’m like, have I? I’ve had to have mentioned Carol. She’s kind of like the, the founder, if you will, of growth versus fixed mindset, especially the research around it.

And her research shows that people who believe their abilities can improve with effort are more likely to persist in the face of setbacks. So, a growth mindset allows for resilience when progress is slow or challenges arise. So, having a growth mindset really does just promote. perseverance, and it reduces the likelihood of abandoning goals just because of a short term failure or setback, which is why I harp on this stuff so much, you guys, and is literally why I created an entire certification to help you help your clients cultivate more of a growth mindset, because it is literally at the foundation.

of everything when it comes to being successful. If you don’t have a growth mindset or you are living in fixed mindset land, you’re going to have a really hard time being successful because you’re going to keep running into that fixed mindset wall. And I do want to make one final note on the importance of self compassion because that came up a lot when I was sifting through all of the research and just know that falling short temporarily does not mean failure.

I’m not even sure I really like using the word failure ever because to me failure is It’s like sort of like the death sentence, right? Like it’s the end of the road when the reality is you can fail and still be successful. It’s sort of like the using and instead of but right? You can fail and still see success.

So. I really want to encourage you and encourage you to encourage your clients that quote unquote failure, I guess we’ll just call them setbacks, are inevitable and that’s going to be part of the process, but that’s okay and it’s really, really hard to see success without any of that being involved. Okay.

That was a lot. That was a lot of, like, this research, that research. I actually don’t really love that I have to look at my notes as much for that, but I really wanted to make sure I was getting the research right and that I was able to, like, get that across to you. And mostly, I really want you to go into resolution season not thinking that It’s going to be a bust, and if you do think it’s going to be a bust, it probably will be, and you’ll just gonna, you’re gonna prove yourself right, and they’re gonna come back to me and be like, see, I told you, but your mindset matters so much here.

And just know that things like temporal landmarks, the fresh start effect has so much research to support it, so if you have big goals for 2025, don’t let all the resolution haters get in the way. And I am so excited to see what you accomplish this year and beyond. As always, if you have any questions, comments, additions, concerns, anything else you want to share with me about this episode or any of these episodes, my Instagram DMs are always open.

Obviously, I would so, so love if you would be willing to take two seconds to leave a review. Every single month we choose a winner from those who have left reviews and submitted the reviews to the review form. You have to do that part, because otherwise we can’t find your contact information. You have to submit it in the review form, which is linked in the show notes.

We choose a winner to get a free workshop from me. So if you don’t mind doing that, I would appreciate it so much. But either way, I appreciate you regardless, and I wish you the best going into 2025.