New Year, New Resolution: Focus on the journey, not just the goal! 

Dr. Wendy Zhou, ND

The reason why people have trouble sticking to their new year resolutions might have something to do with the fact that we focus too much on the goal and not on the process. You may have heard people say enjoy the journey, not just the goal at the end. The same is true when it comes to things that are less tangible to measure such as happiness, good health, less stress, or drinking more water.

Goals change all the time

You might have made a good SMART goal. You may have also had experiences so far in 2022. However, when it comes to our health, our goals are changing all the time. Sometimes good health just feels good but does not always feel satisfying when we hit it — that is because nobody truly can measure ‘good health’. There is always something else we are moving towards.

Let’s take drinking 4 cups of water each day. Each day that you drink 4 cups of water, at first, you are proud of yourself. But after a while, it feels like a chore, but you keep on going because it is your new year’s resolution. You are waiting for it to become a habit, but it seems to be harder and harder each day. At a moment of a stressful day, you completely forgot. Since you forgot once, it is okay to forget two, or three more times. After a few more weeks, you are back to square one.

Sounds familiar? Well, social psychology research has proved that satisfaction when reaching the goal diminishes when you have the same goal each day. Over time, even though we are keeping up with the promise to keep up with your new year’s resolution, it is less and less satisfying when completing your goal. What is a better way to keep yourself motivated?

I propose: Aim to be 1% better each day.

Be a little more than you were yesterday – that is all it is. What if you had a horrible day that broke all your daily routines? That is okay. Tap out early, but plan to just be 1% more than you were today. What if you had a fantastic day? That is amazing! There is always something you can make slight adjustments to as well. Apply this to everything in your life, whether it is a career, relationships, spirituality, physical health, mental health, or your own enrichment… there is always something that we can add that is 1% better.

5,4,3,2,1… to borrow from Mel Robbin’s The 5 Second Rule, I routinely use this technique to jump-start patients’ procrastination, mental health (anxiety and depression), or the pain of forming new habits. I have used the 1% better rule for patients who have just received a diagnosis — Don’t look at the future, look at tomorrow. How can we make them feel 1% better tomorrow? Then, we combine it with Mel Robbin’s 5 second rule and get some crucial health habits started.

I challenge you to change the way you think about New Year’s resolutions this year. Don’t just focus on that number on the scale, the number of salads you are going to consume, or the decreased beer bottles you need to recycle, focus on the everyday journey…and enjoy the heck out of your life!