I vividly remember my younger years every first day of school on January. My Language teacher (and on some years, even other teachers) would ask the class to write an article about our New Year’s Resolutions. I enjoyed writing those over the years.

I dug through my old stuff and found some papers where my resolutions were written. I realized that they were the same year after year. What makes resolutions a cliché is that they never stick with the person. They are just there during the first few days of the New Year until it is forgotten in the middle part of the year. Or should I say the person never sticks with his/her resolutions. The problem is not the resolutions per se, but the person making them.

Now that I am already a Language teacher and the one who asks my students to do the same thing, there is only one thing I wish – I wish that my students would stick to their resolutions. Resolutions are intended for you to become better the next year than the year that has passed. They are supposed to be written to be attained. Resolutions are nonsense if not done. So, here are just some to-do’s that will help you write a better list of resolutions towards a better you:

Make it short and simple.

Cluttering your mind with a lot of resolutions will lead you nowhere. A long list will not make you better and definitely will not help you achieve your entire list. Two or three items on your list would be sufficient and easy to attain. It’s better to have two or three things changed or improved about yourself than a bunch of written items only to be viewed and remembered at the end of the year. The shorter the list, the simpler the implementation. The simpler the implementation, the easier you achieve it. The easier you achieve it, the more efficient you become.

Make it a habit.

According to Aristotle, we are what we repeatedly do. Meaning to say, if we want to change, we have to do it repetitively. We have to make it a habit. In Behavioral Psychology, there is what we call Habit Formation. This is the process from which new behaviors become automatic. The three R’s of habit formation that we have to remember are the following:

Reminder. You have to make a reminder for every new behavior you want to make a habit. With this, you have to partner it with a thing that you already regularly do. For instance, you want to be able to read a book every day. And every morning, you drink coffee. Make drinking coffee your reminder that you have to read a chapter in your book when you finish your coffee.

Routine. As mentioned, you have to choose only two to three resolutions which are feasible to attain. Making them a routine is easier if they are just a few. If you do these two or three things in 30 consecutive days, you’ll be amazed on the 31st day when you don’t have to remind yourself. On the 31st day, your new behavior already becomes a routine, also known as a habit.

Reward. When you have attained your resolutions, reward yourself. It’s important that you have something to look forward to when forming your habit/s. Watch a movie or buy expensive clothing you’ve been wanting to buy for a couple of weeks. Rewarding thyself is a need, indeed. But doing so every day is already a want out of greed. Likewise, if you don’t attain your resolution or if you skip a day without doing it, punish yourself by abstaining from buying your Starbuck’s coffee or by not going out with your friends until you get back into doing what you have to do.

Start right away.

The problem with most individuals is procrastination. We have the tendency to procrastinate or postpone our tasks indefinitely. You’d tell yourself that you’d go on a diet. Oh wait. But how about the ham, fruit salad, lechon and other handa for the holidays? Okay then, you’d decide to just start with your diet after New Year when you have already grown into double your size – which is more difficult. You said you’d study your lessons ahead of time and would just end up studying the night before the final examinations. If you do this with your resolutions, they would never ever stick. So don’t delay! Never postpone and start right away! There shall be no excuses.

These are just simple ways on how you can make the most out of your resolutions. Make it short and simple, make it a habit and start right away. After reading this article, you could already grab your pen and paper and write your most possible-to-attain resolutions towards a better you and start doing them regularly. You’ll see! You’ll be surprised by how much you have matured and changed into the person you want yourself to be.

So, what more can I say? Good luck on attaining your resolutions and I’m excited to see the better you next year!

By Erika M. Ilagan