At Muse Health, we’re no stranger to the upsides of building healthy, viable habits. Unfortunately, the habits most people aim to develop at the beginning of each year tend to be anything but sustainable. And it's that time of year again!

New Year's Eve and New Year's Day often provide the perfect excuse to tuck away bad habits and create new ones that positively influence a person’s life. These resolutions have the potential to be life-changing and beneficial but often fall flat when pitted against lofty expectations. You set a goal for yourself and keep it up for a week or two before deciding it isn’t practical. Sound familiar?

You’re not alone. A study by Edith Cowan University in early 2021 revealed that approximately two in three people abandon their resolutions within the month of January.

But although it might be difficult, making New Year's resolutions that you can actually stick to for the rest of the year—or even your whole life—is possible. With a solid plan, some discipline, and an ounce of motivation to kick things off, you can take advantage of the New Year's trend to transform yourself into a better person.

Here are some tips to consider when choosing New Year's resolutions you can keep for many years to come!

Check Those Expectations

Before you even begin brainstorming changes you would like to see in your life, it’s absolutely vital you take a moment to consider how realistically achievable your goals are. Perhaps you're aiming for weight loss or reading a certain number of books by the end of the year. Those are both noble resolutions, but don’t expect to shave 50 pounds in three months or read five books in a few weeks! The path to your habits can't be outright unattainable.

No matter the goal of your resolution, it’s always possible to set yourself up for failure by expecting too much from yourself. Selecting a goal at the start of the new year means envisioning yourself working at it slowly but steadily in increments that won’t quickly become tedious, difficult, or monotonous. Think of it this way: if you give up on your resolution, you might end up even more discouraged than before you started it!

Create resolutions that will offer some challenge, but also account for some wiggle room for occasional slips on those days when life weighs heavier on your shoulders. This is a tight rope to walk, but the key to sustainable habits boils down to how you intend to build them. By pacing yourself and throwing in some personal rewards, the process of adopting new lifestyle changes becomes not only doable but also enjoyable.

Don’t expect change to happen overnight. You’re in this for the long haul, remember?

Don’t Rely on Motivation Alone

“Motivation gets you started; habit keeps you going.” So the saying goes. And it’s correct.

If you’re serious about self-improvement for life and not just kicking things off for a few weeks before giving up, you’ll have to rethink how you approach challenges. Rather than eating healthy meals because you’re absolutely pumped about cleaning up your diet at the moment, take time to consider why you want to eat better. Discover the deep roots of your motivations instead of relying on the surface-level good feelings.

In this example, there are many positives to eating healthy: a stronger immune system, better physical capabilities, clearer skin, more energy, a longer life, et cetera. These benefits extend beyond yourself by affecting the quality time you spend with family members and loved ones, too. Reflect on every aspect giving that fleeting motivation weight in the first place. That way, when motivation is all but lost, you can dig in and remind yourself of the true reasons to keep going.

Of course, there will still be days when you won’t feel like attempting to find any sort of motivation at all. We've all had them. Under those circumstances, you can only rely on the strength of the habit you’ve already built. A solid habit will see you performing the task automatically without questioning anything, completely bypassing the need for motivation. This takes time to shape, so don’t give up and keep at it!

Comparisons are Dangerous

Nearly everyone is participating in goal setting by January 1st. Coincidentally, everyone is also in different stages of life and faces varying degrees of difficulty with their chosen resolutions. New habits you find taxing to live by might come naturally to other people, and vice versa. Since our daily lives involve socializing with others, however, it can be tempting to compare your own progress with someone else's...especially if they are pursuing a similar resolution as your own.

Don't ever play the comparison game! The truth is, people have vastly different skillsets and tolerances based on their experiences and where they find themselves in life today as they set their New Year's goals. Maybe they are attempting a resolution they tried the past year, or are turning a new leaf and trying something different. Comparing yourself to others can only result in lower satisfaction for either yourself or them—and when longevity is a concern, one misstep is all it takes to give up on a goal entirely.

Instead of wondering why you don't measure up to someone else's lifestyle, narrow your focus to the realm of your control: your own progress. Encourage others in their individual journies. Build them up. You might even find people with similar goals to work alongside as accountability partners!

If everything goes according to plan, you won't even have an end goal in sight; you'll just be looking forward to a new resolution to begin next year!

Health and Wellness is Always a Good Resolution

If you're looking for an idea for a New Years Resolution you can keep, why not get a fresh start building a healthy immune system? There are many general ways to do this: improving your diet, exercising, drinking plenty of water, and caring for your mental health, to name a few.

Hand sanitizer provides another fantastic way to bolster your body's defenses on the go. Because even strong immune systems don't always win the day, a quality sanitizing solution can kill off the problematic bacteria before they get a chance to enter your body. Muse Health features a Fragrance-free Hand Sanitizer solution that keeps your hands moisturized while killing 99% of germs. That means you'll get much more frequent use out of our natural ingredients compared to other brands.

Visit our store and get a jump on this simple-yet-beneficial New Year's resolution!