Happy New Year! Have you made your New Year’s resolutions yet? Will you follow a new diet or exercise regime? Have you made a commitment to stop smoking or avoid substances that impair your physical and mental health? Have you determined to save more money this year?
According to a Huffington Post’s Lifestyle article last week, the top six New Year’s resolutions are to lose weight, get organized, learn to say “no,” travel more, spend more time with family and learn a new skill or hobby. Yet, as most can attest, it’s much easier to make resolutions than to keep them.
Why do we make statements of intent and promises that don’t materialize?
Well, much of it has to do with the misguided belief that intentions are equal with actions.
The Self-Completion Theory, a psychological model that teaches that “self” is defined by the way society responds to individuals who define themselves with symbols of accomplishment and communicates that self-definition with those symbols. An example might be if a person sees himself or herself as healthy, the symbols of health might include a fit physique, good diet habits, regular exercise and wearing athletic outerwear. To show the “symbol” of health, the individual engages in activities that project the societal definition of health.