What is it about starting a new year that is so invigorating? Maybe it’s the excitement of a fresh start or the opportunity to prove to yourself that you can finally stick with your resolutions this year.

The promise of a new beginning leaves most of us motivated to change. The problem is that we get overly ambitious and set unrealistic New Year’s Resolutions that we can barely stick to until February.

Why is it so difficult to stick to New Year’s Resolutions?

They are too lofty or intense. Humans tend to stick to new habits more easily when they are simple to implement.
They are too vague, like saying “be healthier”. If it is not measurable, it may be tricky to know whether or not you were successful.
They are not meaningful enough to you.

If you avoid these common pitfalls, you will be more likely to stick with your resolutions this year. Make them manageable to implement, specific/measurable, and meaningful.

As 2023 approaches, let’s commit to shifting from traditional resolutions that tend to be too intense to smaller, more realistic resolutions. Here are 5 ideas for New Year’s Resolutions:

1. Eat dinner with your family at the table X times per week (no devices allowed).

There is nothing quite like having dinner around the table with your loved ones. Growing up, I always looked forward to dinnertime to share funny or embarrassing stories from school with my family. It was my safe haven, where I felt heard and seen fully.

You can decide how many days a week is realistic for your family to gather around the dinner table. It doesn’t need to be a five-course homemade meal. More importantly, the focus is on establishing the habit of connecting with your loved ones and checking in daily. Everyone can pitch in, like having kids set the table and wash dishes so that the load doesn’t fall on the parents.

Action: Every Sunday evening, decide what night(s) you will eat together with your family the following week. Right before dinner, gather devices in one spot that is not within reach for any family member.

2. Improve sleep by removing distractions.

One of the biggest distractions for sound sleep is devices that emit blue light. The blue light boosts alertness and suppresses melatonin (the hormone that makes us feel sleepy). One way to combat sleep issues caused by blue light is to have all devices inaccessible right before bed and overnight.

Action: Place your phone far from where you sleep, ideally on the opposite end of your room or another room altogether. Consider getting an alarm clock instead of relying on your phone.

3. Establish set work hours.

If you work from home, it can be especially tricky to avoid the overlap between work and life. Setting clear start and end times helps keep your work and home life separate. It also helps to keep you present while at home and present while at work (even if both happen at the same location).

During work hours, focus on your work, check your email, and try to centralize work on one device (preferably your laptop). During home hours, have your work laptop out of sight and be where your feet are.

Action: Set alarms on your phone for start and end times for work. Consider using your last 10-30 minutes at work to tie loose ends or plan when you can get to them the next day so that you have peace of mind once you leave the “office”.

4. Add a fruit and vegetable to your day during weekdays.

If you already love fruits and veggies, you can challenge yourself to add more than one, but for many of us, even adding one will be a habit change. It can feel less intimidating to add food to your day, rather than remove food from your day. Rather than telling yourself to resist that cupcake today, you can focus on telling yourself you want to add a snack of an apple. Little by little, your palette will adjust, and crave more wholesome foods.

Action: Add fruits and veggies you enjoy to your grocery list. Since we tend to eat what we see, have your fruit easily accessible on your kitchen counter and vegetables in sight whenever you open the refrigerator.

5. Move 10 minutes a day during weekdays.

Implementing a new, intense exercise regimen might sound enticing, but it will be more challenging to sustain in the long run. But, adding 10 minutes of movement to your day? That sounds doable. On days when you feel compelled to go beyond your 10 minutes, you will feel extra accomplished that you exceeded your goal.

Action: Decide each morning how you will incorporate 10 minutes of movement today. This can mean a family walk after dinner, squats while cooking, or hitting the gym.

New Year, New You!

As Bill Gates states, “Most people overestimate what they can do in one year and underestimate what they can do in ten years.” Although it may be tempting, don’t fall into the trap of setting unrealistic resolutions this year. Like compound interest, the small habits you choose to implement today will significantly improve your life over the next decade.

Another benefit of choosing realistic goals is that you are likely to gain momentum to carry you through each day because you are repeatedly proving to yourself that you are capable of sticking to your habits.

In just a few days, we will be ringing in another new year. Welcome 2023 with open arms and realistic resolutions! Remember to make them manageable to implement, specific, and meaningful.

5 Practical and Realistic New Year’s Resolutions for 2023