What to do with your New Year’s resolutions

Each year, people make New Year’s resolutions to maintain a better diet, achieve a healthier weight, kick bad habits or develop better financial health.

Those resolutions seem to go by the wayside quickly, and according to Penn State News, conflicting goals may be to blame.

Since we aren’t financial experts or lifestyle gurus, we found some articles that address some of the common New Year’s resolutions that are so easily given up on before the end of January. With any luck and determination, your New Year’s resolutions may last all of 2015 and longer.

1. Develop a healthier financial situation

Maybe you have debt from college, buying a home, extended illness or another situation. Regardless of your situation, financial experts will tell you that there are steps to taking control of your finances.

Forbes recommends setting SMART goals: specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and time-sensitive. By doing so, you’ll be able to determine a plan for tackling your debt, savings and retirement.

For small ways that you can learn to save on groceries, bills and more, see the Little House Living blog post on saving money. You might recognize small strategies that will result in money saved over time.

2. Kick procrastination to the curb

It’s easy to trick ourselves into putting off important tasks for later, but if you’ve noticed a recurring problem, you may have made a resolution to stop procrastinating. Time describes nine strategies for overcoming procrastination, cultivating productive habits and getting through your to-do lists.

3. Take better care of yourself

If “new year, new you” is your New Year’s resolution, pinpoint what exactly it is that you want to change for the better.

If you want to shed some pounds, add some muscle or be altogether healthier, you won’t be hard pressed to find tips on the web. There are a plethora of diet tips from all sorts of health and fitness experts, but that doesn’t mean you have to listen to everything you hear. Talk with your doctor about your health and diet for advice that’s specifically tailored to you. Also, Penn State Extension offers nutrition guidelines that, if followed, could help to reduce the risk of developing chronic illnesses.

If it’s your emotional and mental health that you want to improve, your doctor will be able to help or refer you to someone else who can offer assistance.

The beginning of a new year is seen as a logical time to make resolutions for your life, but it takes perseverance to stick with January goals throughout all 12 months.