Why New Year’s Resolutions Fail and How to Fix It - Degen Edition

Why New Year’s Resolutions Fail and How to Fix It - Degen Edition

(No AI was used in the writing of this post)

As we enter into the holiday season, it's easy for all of us to start feeling a little worn out and less dedicated to our regular fitness routines. That is if you have any… tough to find time between  And when January rolls around, we see masses of people flocking back to the gym with great intentions. But what often happens next is that these new year fitness resolutions quickly fizzle out like a cheap sparkler after just a few weeks or months.

According to a study in the Journal of Clinical Psychology the most popular resolutions include weight loss, exercise, stopping smoking, buying the dip, better money management and debt reduction. Unfortunately for the masses these exciting resolutions seem to lose their steam as a major drop off occurs at 5 weeks, 12 weeks, and the rest by 6 months. And we all know how tough money management is during a bear.

So why does this keep happening year after year? (Broken resolutions, not bear markets that is.) Well, according to experts, there are several psychological and logistical challenges that are inherent in human nature - challenges that can be overcome if we understand them and learn how to manage them effectively.

So if you're looking to stick to your goals this year, be sure to keep these challenges in mind and find ways to overcome them. That way, you'll be well on your way to achieving all those amazing New Year's resolutions… and less likely to hit that February boozer.

Here are SEVEN (7!!) things to consider while trying to keep hitting the gym after the initial excitement of New Year’s resolutions begins to fizzle. For you degens, I added something that might make it more understandable to you.

1.       There Needs to Be a Tangible Game Plan – Your Roadmap

2.       Setting Unrealistic Goals Creates Major Psychological Hurdles – Price too high and you won’t mint out

3.       Goals must be Clear, Quantifiable, and Attainable – Let others build the Metaverse, create something specific

4.       One must Attain the Tools Needed for Success – Learn about smart contracts

5.       Establishing a Support System and Positive Motivators – Manage your “personal discord”

6.       The Focus must be on Behavioral Change – Reduce friction, make it second nature

7.       Don’t wait – start now! – Hit that whitelist hard and mint, YGMI

There Needs to Be a Tangible Game Plan

Many people make vague resolutions like "I plan to get in better shape", but having a specific, concrete goal is much more effective for achieving success. This is because vague aspirations do not take into account new behaviors or habits that are needed to reach your goal.

To truly be successful, you need to develop an instinctual familiarity with the actions and behaviors necessary to attain your goal. And this can only happen if you have a clear, tangible game plan that you can focus on and work toward consistently over time.

So if you're looking to make real changes in your life this year, be sure to start by setting concrete, achievable goals and creating a clear, actionable plan for reaching them.

A well-crafted plan is essential for achieving your goals, as it allows you to account for all the different variables involved such as developing effective time management strategies. Additionally, taking some time to reflect on what you want to achieve can help you stay focused and motivated throughout the process.

So when you're looking to set new goals or tackle an existing challenge, be sure to take the time to create a thorough, well-thought-out plan.

This is your own project roadmap. I’m sure you’ve seen roadmaps that are more fantasy metaverse than realistic. You must avoid unrealistic roadmaps.

The key is to focus on one specific goal or habit at a time, in a step-by-step format.

The following are some real-world examples of transforming a common resolution into a tangible, habit developing plan.

A common resolution is: “I will eat healthier food”

Let's change that to the following habit – “I will begin eating fruit each time I have a craving for snack food such as potato chips.”

Another common resolution is: “I will get in better shape”

As a habit, that becomes: “I will lift weights three times per week and perform cardiovascular training two time each week.”

In both of those examples we go from a vague, yet very common resolution that does not provide a specific and tangible game plan to a resolution that provides an immediate road map of what needs to be accomplished.

It is very easy to apply this formula to any vague resolution that you have in mind. However sometimes, as you might be all too frequently aware of, is that many people, yourself included, set unrealistic goals for themselves.

Let's investigate the issues with that common pitfall.

Setting Unrealistic Goals Creates Major Psychological Hurdles

As many psychologists have noted, New Year's resolutions are often seen as a form of cultural procrastination – a way for us to reinvent ourselves and set excessively high expectations that are ultimately very difficult to achieve.

This leads to what is known as the "false hope syndrome" – a state in which our resolutions become so unrealistic and unaligned with who we really are that they end up failing before we even get started.

But there are some important differences between men and women when it comes to achieving fitness goals. For example, research has shown that men tend to be more successful when their goals are specific, tangible, measurable, and achievable.

On the other hand, women seem to be more successful when they share their goals with others – perhaps through social media or by joining a group fitness class where they have accountability from their friends.

No matter your gender, it's important to approach your resolutions in a way that feels authentic and realistic for you. Resolutions must embrace your personality and capabilities.

So take the time to reflect on your strengths and limitations, set clear and manageable targets, and encourage yourself to seek out support from family, friends, Discord groups etc as you work towards your goals this year.

Goals must be Clear, Quantifiable, and Attainable

When setting long term goals, it is important to first reverse engineer the process by considering things like achievable rates of weight loss or fitness gains. For example, if you want to lose 20 pounds, you will need to burn off 70,000 calories through exercise in order to reach that goal. And in order to do this consistently over time, you will need to build up your physical fitness capacity so that you can handle that level of exertion every week.

Why is that? At an average capacity of burning 250 calories per workout, 4 times per week, it would take 70 months to attain that goal without significant dietary change. That is a long time, longer than a cycle of bear and bull markets combined. I know you will be discouraged before you accomplish that feat.

Just like the many who enter crypto or NFTs with the goal of getting rich quick, setting too lofty of goals often results in burn-out, ruin, and failure.

The key to creating and obtaining goals is focusing on daily objectives. Daily objectives must add up to the weekly goals. And these weekly goals must add up to the long-term monthly goals.

If you can accomplish these daily objectives consistently, you will reach your overall weekly goals thus achieving success over the long term.

For example, your daily objective might be to burn 350 calories via any type of workout. That is a checkable item that is easy to track if you completed or did not complete. That would add up to a goal of burning 2000+ calories per week via aerobic or anaerobic training to improve health markers.

If you’re watching your caloric intake, then your tangible daily goal might be about the calories you consume at a specific meal, or about avoiding a particular food. Tracking calories, and even macros, is generally time consuming and not for everyone. However, you might now that you can follow a good diet with the exception of soda. Therefore, your daily goal is to NOT have soda. That is something you can check-off if you completed it, and when consistently completed, will help you achieve your goals.

So take the time to set clear, quantifiable goals that are based off of attainable daily tasks.

One must Attain the Tools Needed for Success

As many of us know, achieving fitness goals can be a challenging and sometimes daunting task. And that's why having the right tools and guidance can make all the difference. This is where a qualified professional becomes critical as they can precisely provide the guidance, motivation and expertise needed.

That being said, everyone can say they are a qualified professional, and I can guarantee you that many qualified are absolutely not professional.

However, studies have shown that having some sort of accountability is key to reaching our long-term fitness goals, whether it be a significant other, a coach, or even an online community or forum.

With regular feedback and encouragement from someone trusted, you are much more likely to achieve your goals and stay on track throughout the process.

Whether this someone you know IRL, or an anon Ape, having a trusted source of information is essential for goal attainment.

Establishing a Support System and Positive Motivators

First, it's important to recognize that people are most successful when they have social accountability and feel motivated to pursue positive actions. This can be accomplished through things like writing a letter of commitment or finding an accountability partner who will help keep you on track and focused on achieving your goals.

A daily tweet with “proof-of-workout” is another way to add social accountability.

Another key factor in establishing positive behavior traits is identifying both enablers and disablers. Enablers are the things or people that can help us reach our goals, while disablers are those things or people that hinder us from succeeding. By being aware of both, we can better understand how to overcome any obstacles and stay on track towards achieving our goals.

The Focus must be on Behavioral Change

As many of us know, making a resolution work often requires changing one's behaviors. And in order to do that successfully, it's important to focus on overall behavioral change. After all, most of you will only have 3-5 hours per week to work in the gym on your goals – which means you may have over 160 hours left for potentially "messing everything up" if other synergistic behaviors, such as healthy food intake and stress management, are not part of your regular thoughts.

To achieve successful behavioral change, we need to embrace thinking patterns that create associated neural pathways and memories. This means that your resolutions must become a part of your everyday thinking processes, rather than just another goal on your list. The brain must perceive the tasks associated with the goal as second-nature.

So if you're looking to make lasting changes in the new year, focus on holistic behavioral change – and remember that it takes time and effort to create healthy habits.

Don’t wait – start now!

People have a tendency to think about and plan their resolutions in November and December. In fact, there are probably more people that have a resolution ready by early December… but never actually attempt it than those that even start.

So don’t delay!

As soon as you have your roadmap and support system, go for it!

This is your health and wellness that you are trying to change. You do not need the conviction that some random Alt is going to moon before you buy in. Whether you like it or not, you were forced to “mint” yourself, now it’s time to build in the bear.

I hope now that you have an idea how to develop a comprehensive plan for goal attainment that addresses all aspects of achieving success.

Remember, it is important to understand that in order to be truly successful, you must address both the positives and the negatives when setting goals. This means identifying any obstacles or barriers that may get in your way, as well as focusing on the actions or activities necessary to succeed.

So if you are looking to achieve your goals and realize your dreams, remember to keep a balanced approach by incorporating both negative and positive elements into your plan. With this approach, you can be sure to help yourself achieve success no matter what obstacles stand in your way!