According to Wikipedia, a New Year’s resolution is a tradition, most common in the Western World but also found in the Eastern World, in which a person resolves to continue good practices, change an undesired trait or behavior, accomplish a personal goal, or otherwise improve their behavior at the beginning of a calendar year.
According to Forbes-Top New Year Resolutions For 2024
Improve fitness 48%, Improve finances 38%, Improve mental health 36%
Lose weight 34%, Improve diet 32%
Make more time for loved ones 25%, Stop smoking 12%
Learn a new skill 9%, Make more time for hobbies 7%
Improve work-life balance 7%, Travel more 6%
Meditate regularly 5%, Drink less alcohol 3%
Perform better at work 3%
Source: Forbes Health
Setting a New Year’s resolution is an incredibly common practice, especially in the U.S. A 2022 poll by YouGov indicated that 37% of Americans said they had a goal or resolution they wanted to achieve in 2023, with 87% saying they were very or somewhat likely to keep it through the year. Interestingly, another study found the practice of resolution setting may be more common in the U.S., as similar polls in Sweden found just 12% to 14% of people set goals for the new year: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7725288/.
The Forbes Health/One Poll survey found that the average resolution lasts just 3.74 months. Only 8% of respondents tend to stick with their goals for one month, while 22% last two months, 22% last three months and 13% last four months.
