How to stick to your New Year's resolutions

We’re almost one month into 2020, so it’s time that we check in with you and your New Year’s resolutions. Here at CCHQ, there are a few people who have already given up on theirs (don’t worry, we’ll get them back on track), and if you’re finding yourself in a similar boat, we’ve got the perfect post for you! Have a read of these six points to get a bit of advice on how to stick to your resolutions and nail them!

1. Break them down into bite size portions

By breaking your larger goals down into manageable, bite size chunks, they’ll seem much more achievable. If your goal for the year is to lose weight, set yourself a number of pounds you’d like to lose per week or per month. You could go even smaller and think about mindset before launching yourself straight into healthier food shops, gym workouts or activewear.

2. Change one behaviour at a time

Most New Year’s resolutions are all about behaviour and bettering yourself, and it can be tempting to try and make huge changes overnight. It’s impossible to keep up healthy habits if you try to change your behaviours all at once, so take it slow and develop one step at a time. As the saying goes, slow and steady wins the race! No one expects you to achieve your resolution a few weeks into the year – you’ve got a whole 12 months to play with!

3. Hold yourself accountable

This is a lot less scary than it sounds, but by holding yourself accountable, you’re almost making a promise that will encourage you through the rough patches. Use a journal or a diary to write your resolution and dates that you made great steps towards achieving it. You could also use social media to tweet or post about your resolution, or seek like-minded people. If you want to be less public, just have a chat with someone close to you who will check up on your progress – a partner, friend, work colleague or someone from your craft group!

4. Don’t wait to reward yourself

If you’ve broken your resolution down into bitesize chunks, you’ll have little concrete targets that you’re aiming to hit along the way. Don’t wait until you reach the final destination to give yourself a pat on the back – give yourself a medal after each hurdle. This could be blasting your favourite tune and having a bit of a boogie after hitting so many steps, or having a bit of a cheat meal, or even just asking for a cheer on from your friends and family.

5. Learn from the past

‘Learn from your mistakes’ is a perfect quote for this point because any bump or snag you encounter along your journey can help you to think about what didn’t work and why. Maybe you took on too big a challenge? This can be counteracted by breaking down the goal into even smaller steps. Or maybe you jumped into something a bit too quick? Take your time and learn what feels right for you.

6. Don’t obsess over it

The worst thing you can do with a New Year’s resolution is obsess over it. The world will still keep turning if you don’t achieve your goal to a full 100%, so don’t burn yourself out or make yourself unnecessarily anxious about it. No one is perfect, so be thankful and mindful of each small goal that you achieve. If you aim to complete rather than compete, you’ll always be a winner!

We hope that this little post has come in handy. Make sure you save it or bookmark it, so that you can re-visit throughout the year if you need a little boost! But we’re so sure that you can achieve any of the goals that you’ve set yourself for the year – go and smash them!

Let’s have a chat about New Year’s resolutions. Let us know what yours is/are on Facebook UK, Facebook USA,  Twitter, Instagram UK, Instagram US, Pinterest UK or Pinterest US using the hashtag #crafterscompanion.