Sure, we’ve all broken our New Year’s resolutions in the past. But a new survey suggests this year might be easier than ever to give up on that “New Year, New Me” attitude most people have until, say, the first week in February.
The non-scientific poll of 2,000 Americans, commissioned by the fitness app Verv, finds that the average American tried to form an average of 19 new positive habits while in quarantine, and of those, we gave up on all but four of them.
For example, 34% tried a new exercise regimen, 31% a new hobby, and 29% tried new cooking practices during the quarantine — the three most popular positive habits they tried to form in 2020. However, well over half of respondents confessed they found trying to make their new positive habits “stick” during this time was “next to impossible.”
Other positive habits — including setting a new wake-up time (13%), meditation (12%) and going to bed earlier (10%) — were quickly abandoned, the respondents admitted.
This doesn’t fare too well for 2021 resolutions, the survey revealed, especially considering that “eating better,” “managing stress better,” and “exercising more consistently” were the top goals for the new year. Add to that the fact the average respondent said they usually only keep their New Year’s resolutions for a little more than a month, and the outlook for positive change isn’t very bright.
Top abandoned positive habits during the pandemic, according to Verv:
A new wake-up time (13%)
Meditation (12%)
Going to bed earlier (10%)
Journaling (10%)
Checking the news (9%)
Top challenges to keeping a new positive habit:
Seeing the results of my efforts (39%)
Tracking my progress (35%)
The difficulty of doing things consistently (32%)
Being held accountable (27%)
My old habits are very ingrained (25%)