Editorial: Resolution time as New Year approaches

Hawke's Bay Today News Editor James Ford.

It's that time of year again when we reflect on the last 12 months and envisage what the next dozen have in store for us.

For me it's certainly been a year of change.

From moving to the North Island from Mid-Canterbury to travelling back to my native UK for the first time since arriving in New Zealand as a wide eyed 22-year-old.

But as 2017 drifts away and 2018 emerges, New Year's resolutions begin to occupy our minds.

It's a determination to become a better version of ourselves in the year ahead.

I've tried, and, it must be noted, failed on countless occasions.

Whether it be staying away from lollies or cutting back on the booze, most of us tend to yield to our temptations earlier than we'd like, well, certainly before the next December 31 anyway.

So this year I decided to look into why I keep failing and come up with a plan of action to stave off the hankering for a sugary snack.

The NZ Herald previously asked Hal Hershfield, an assistant professor at UCLA's Anderson School of Management, and two other experts about goal-setting.

Their advice came in the form or five tips.

Make it public; "It's much harder to flout promises, even promises you make to yourself, when others know that you've made them," says Drew Carton, an assistant professor at Wharton who has done research on goal-setting.

Set milestone markers; a challenging goal can seem particularly daunting on its own, but breaking it into smaller pieces can make it less overwhelming.

Use 'if/then' statements to form new habits.
For example - If it's between 9 and 10am, I'm going to clean off my desk.
The basic idea is it is easier to follow through with our goals if we give ourselves a plan, Hershfield says.

Don't think too positively; Gabriele Oettingen, a professor at NYU, believes that too much optimism about a goal gets in the way of the energy needed to reach it.

And finally, look for other fresh starts.

So, if the goals you set at New Year don't pan out, try setting them again at another obvious milestone.

I guess it's worth a try.

Happy New Year and good and luck with your New Year resolutions.