For most people, the beginning of the year is a chance to accomplish new goals and develop better habits. What happens to all of that excitement and energy after the ball drops at midnight? How quickly does that ambition fade and how likely are you to see your New Year’s goals through? In this article, we explain what the most common resolutions are and the likelihood of intentions turning into reality.
A recent survey of 1,000 U.S. adults looked at participants’ overall outlook surrounding types of resolutions and how much they prioritized them. In 2022, the same Forbes Health/OnePoll survey concluded that prioritizing mental health was the top resolution for 2023. For 2024, fitness was at the top of this year’s survey list. 62% of participants said they felt pressured to set a resolution, with women feeling slightly more pressured than men. Overall, 48% of people wanted to improve fitness in 2024. Of that percentage, 55% say that physical and mental health are of equal importance.
In this year’s survey, more people cited fitness as a top resolution than improving finances. What may or may not surprise you is that women (52%) in the survey were more likely than men (42%) to focus on fitness. The great news is that 80% of people in the survey felt confident that they would be able to reach their goals in 2024.
Most Common New Year’s Resolutions
In 2024, the OnePoll survey found some resolutions to be more common than others. The most popular goals for 2024 are:
- Improving fitness (48%)
- Improving finances (38%)
- Improving mental health (36%)
- Losing weight (34%)
- Improving diet (32%)
Other, less popular resolutions included traveling more (6%), regular meditation (5%), drinking less alcohol (3%), and performing better at work (3%). That last one either suggests that people don’t want to excel at work, or that they feel progressing at work is not necessary.
How Common Are New Year’s Resolutions?
Setting a New Year’s resolution is a very common practice within the U.S. A poll from 2022 reported that 37% of Americans had a goal or resolution in mind for 2023. 87% said they were somewhat likely to keep that goal throughout the year. Another study found that the practice of setting a resolution may be more common in the U.S. Similar polls in Sweden, for example, found that just 12% to 14% of people set resolutions or goals.
Regarding New Year’s resolutions, American adults can also be very ambitious. A survey from 2020 revealed that about two out of every five respondents already had a goal for the new year. Survey authors noted that 18% of people from that survey had multiple goals.
How Long Does The Average Resolution Last?
Do you set lofty goals for the new year and then realize that you are no longer pursuing them by March? Well, you can rest easy because you are not alone in that camp. Failing at New Year’s resolutions is a very common practice, but that is typically because people set lofty goals that are not feasible. There is no point in setting a goal to lose 20 pounds in one month, especially if you haven’t done any preparation to detail how you will make that goal happen. If you want to quit drinking coffee and don’t start tapering off prior to the beginning of the year, you may abandon your goal very quickly.
The types of goals you set will determine whether or not you achieve them. To be fair, your personality and drive also factor into the equation. You are more likely to have success with action-oriented goals within the first year. Avoidance-oriented goals (like quitting alcohol or abandoning carbs) don’t do as well. The beauty of resolutions is that you do not need confetti, fireworks, or a ball to drop to spark a fresh start. Any time of year is the perfect time to begin a resolution. You decide when to make a change and don’t need to wait for January 1st to set out to achieve your goals.
