So we made it through Thanksgiving and Christmas and we are looking toward the brand new year. If you are anything like me, you made it a goal to eat as much as possible throughout the holidays for no reason other than you could! I also went a bit overboard on the budget I set for Christmas gifts, but my kids are happy about that one!

So now it’s time to pay for all that gluttony by making a New Year’s resolution. I have heard that more than half of all American’s make New Year’s resolutions and that over 90 percent of them fail to meet their goal. There are many, many reasons why we fail at our goals for the New Year. In the past, I have usually failed at my resolutions by early February! This year, however, will be different. And yes, I say that every year, but this year I think I have narrowed down my reasons for failure and resolve to keep these in mind when making my resolutions for 2015!

• Be realistic. Sure, I would love to drop 25-30 pounds by the spring. Let’s see, to do that I will need to drop 10 pounds per month. That will probably not happen. However, I can resolve to lose 3-5 pounds per month and stick to that! I will not set unreasonable goals at the gym or with my diet and will not lose focus.
• Be specific.  Instead of resolving to just save money, I’ll come up with a plan. I am going to use a progressive savings plan that many of you have seen before. Week 1, put $1 in a savings account. Week 2, put $2 in. Week 3, add $3 and so on until I’ve saved almost $1,400 to spend on Christmas next year.
• Don’t set too many goals. The more goals you have to attain, the more likely you are to fail at one or two of them and totally lose focus on them all. I am making just two of the top resolutions this year: lose weight and save money.
• Share your goals with you close friends. I will surround myself with the right people to act as my support and encourage me to succeed rather than lead me astray!
• Don’t use guilt or shame to motivate yourself.  No one is perfect. I will stray from my goals from time to time. Instead of getting down on myself, I’ll try to refocus on the positive aspects of my goal and move forward from there. I won’t give up.

I know making New Year’s resolutions sometimes sounds like a cliché, but setting the right goals and taking the right approach to reach those goals can result in a great 2015! Do you have any other tips for keeping New Year’s resolutions? Please feel free to share and Happy New Year!