Hi all, Now that 2024 has come to a close and we’re off to a fresh start in 2025, some of you may be thinking about your New Year’s resolutions. Award-winning behavioral scientist Katy Milkman offers several strategies for success sourced from her book, “How to Change: The Science of Getting from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be”. Here are three of them: 1. Make a cue-based plan: Remembering when to act is easier if you outline when and where you’ll follow through. For example, “I’ll meditate more” as a resolution is too vague. Instead, make a more specific cue-based plan such as “I’ll meditate at the office for 30 minutes on weekdays during my lunch break”. Your office and the lunch break are your mental cues to start that habit. Adding a reminder such as a sticky note on your lunch bag could be helpful as well. 2. Consider a penalty: This might seem counterintuitive but ensuring that you face a penalty if you don’t achieve your New Year’s resolution can be effective. You can do this by telling a few people about your goal so that if they check back later and you haven’t followed through, you will feel bad. Avoiding that bad feeling will motivate you to persevere towards your goal. You can also put money on the table, as research suggests that self-imposed cash penalties are effective motivators. One way to do this is to make a bet with a friend that you will stick to your New Year’s resolution. If you don’t, you pay. 3. Make it fun: If you’d like to hit the gym more, a long, punishing workout might not be the answer. Research suggests that focusing on this is not enough if you are neglecting the fact that you may not enjoy the activity at hand. If you get pleasure from workouts, however, you will stick with it longer. Milkman describes ‘temptation bundling’, which means pairing your New Year’s resolution with something you consider pleasurable. Try only allowing yourself to watch your favorite TV show at the gym. In that way, you’ll start looking forward to workouts. To learn more about the bestselling “How to Change” book or to purchase it, click here.
