By: Caleb Piche-Larocque
CNIB National Youth Council Member
New year, new you! It’s time to plan your future. With the new year kicking off, you might be thinking of going to the gym or creating a budget as your New Year’s resolution. The issue with this is that after a couple of weeks, most people end up giving up and quitting before they can see the effects. Have you ever wondered why that is? Have you ever thought of selecting something which increased your odds of sticking with it?
A few years ago, my New Year’s resolution was to work on my literacy skills – a skill I use every day and would undoubtedly help in my future endeavours. After a few weeks into my resolution, which was filled with reading and self-study, I eventually felt unmotivated and fatigued. That is until I read a book that changed my perspectives on anything and everything.
In Atomic Habits, author James Clear breaks down the psychology of building habits. Do you know how long, on average, your brain can focus on one topic or idea? The answer is a staggering two minutes—no wonder most habits fall through within the first few weeks! We put too much emphasis on selecting large and complicated resolutions, which leaves us vulnerable to our own unconscious limits. With this new information in hand, I then found a way to rework my New Year’s resolution.
My goal was no longer to better my literacy skills by reading for 20 minutes a day; instead, I tried to read for two minutes a day. To my surprise, I ended up reading more than before – picking up a book and not putting it down. One year later, I read over 25 audiobooks and refined my French literacy skills.
This year, I encourage you to pick a small resolution that can lead to bigger and better things in your future. Instead of focusing on exercising every day, maybe opt to just put on your workout equipment. You will find it much easier to motivate yourself with your running shoes on than your slippers! Happy resolution hunting.