Whether you love them or hate them, they are a popular tradition in the United States.

Planning a New Year’s resolution is most often done in the effort of breaking bad habits, pursuing healthier lifestyles, and bettering oneself.

These resolutions, more than anything, allow people to abandon the tribulations of the previous year and focus on a new horizon.

The question is: Do they actually work?

According to Pew Research Center, “Among those who had a New Year’s resolution (and remember it), 72% said they kept it.”

Which means our problem does not lie in the concept of resolutions themselves, but how we pursue them.

Many New Year’s resolutions are a flop after January because people are too ambitious (or unrealistic)  in their goals.

It would be pretty much impossible for the average working person to lose fifty pounds in a month. The same goes for people promising to go the gym everyday or find their true love.

If you are committed to the “New year, new you,” sentimit you will need to change your approach.

So, how can you have a new year with a new you?

• Start out small and then grow

You want to quit procrastinating? Start by not procrastinating in a particular class and then work your way up.

• Stay committed and focused

This seems obvious, but if you forget you have a New Year’s resolution, it’s a fat chance you’ll succeed. Set up reminders to keep your goal in the forefront of your mind.

• Don’t try something grossly unrealistic

As much as you might want to master a new instrument in a year, the odds are just too slim.

• Make sure it’s actually worth it

If you put all your eggs in one basket and come to find out you are not as keen as you once believed, you will have wasted an entire year.