New year, new you?
I love how each new year gives us a chance for a reset. The psychological effect of closing out the old, cold year and beginning a fresh one encourages reflection—even if you’re in the middle of an Antipodean summer instead of a North Atlantic winter.
As you reflect on the past year, I hope you took a moment to appreciate the positives and achievements—not just the events, habits, or (dare I say it) weight you want to lose or leave behind!
A new beginning brings opportunities, expectations, and hopes for better habits or even a ‘new you.’ But as with anything worth pursuing, success often hinges on following some ground rules that we sometimes overlook in our enthusiasm.
The fast way is the slow way.
This is especially true for New Year’s resolutions.
Starting too big, with grand plans and expectations, is why most new actions don’t become habits. The first sign of death for a new desired habit is a sudden and marked departure from your existing routine or life. Going vegan overnight isn’t going to work! You’ll have far too much already in your fridge and pantry to make that decision viable, you’re already setting yourself up for falling off the rails and then it’s far too easy to stay off them.
But changing your eating habits by setting one day a week as your vegan day and then increasing that as you get more confident in your new habits, replacing usual purchases with vegan choices and learning more about substitutions and techniques.
Over the course of the year you are much more likely to find yourself having moved your personal eating habit dial waaaay over towards where you want it to be.
Habits vs. Goals: Are you clear on what you’re pursuing?
People often confuse the two things and that can be counter productive.
For instance, if you want to start running, the Couch to 5K program is a fantastic beginner’s plan. But many (myself included!) complete the 5K and then stop running altogether. Why?
The habit didn’t stick: Six weeks wasn’t enough time to fully embed running into my routine.
I treated the 5K as a goal: Once I achieved it, I lost motivation. I had no habit to fall back on.
This year, I’m taking a new approach. I’m trying the NHS Couch to 5K program, which takes nine weeks—more time to build consistency. I’ve also set myself a follow-up goal: after completing the program, I’ll run for 20 minutes twice a week until the end of the year.
This plan feels realistic, and I’m setting myself up for success by focusing on both creating a habit and achieving manageable goals.
Set yourself up for success.
As you think about your resolutions—or fine-tune them—ask yourself:
Am I creating a new habit, setting a goal, or both?
Are my goals realistic?
Am I setting myself up for success?
Set yourself up for success, set realistic goals (let’s face it, if you find yourself smashing your targets you can always increase them!) give yourself regular opportunities to recognise what you’ve achieved, celebrate the small achievements.
By the end of 2025, your New Year’s resolutions can become your Old Year’s celebrations. And as 2026 rolls around, you’ll be a more confident, capable version of yourself.
Happy New Year! Let’s make it a great one.
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