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The 10 most popular New Year’s resolutions and why they so often fail
March 27, 2025
“Everything will be different from tomorrow!” You never hear or say this phrase as often as on New Year’s Eve. New Year’s resolutions are an absolute hit every year. But why do so many of us make these resolutions? And what are the most popular New Year’s resolutions? Why do so many of them fail? And what can you do to successfully tackle them? Here are the answers:
Top 10 good intentions
The top 10 most popular resolutions include many approaches and attempts to eradicate one’s own flaws and finally become a better person. Whether physically, mentally or interpersonally.
1. more time for family and friends
At the top of the top 10 is the desire to take more time for family and friends. Because at some point, you suddenly become an adult, have a full-time job and your free time seems increasingly scarce. All of a sudden, you no longer go out partying with friends or eating with your family at the weekend – you want to relax on the couch. After all, the day has already been long enough. But people are not made to be alone. So there is a growing desire to reconnect with people we don’t see as often as we used to because everyday life always gets in the way. Many of us want to change this and a new resolution is born.
2. do more sport
In second place is the desire to get more exercise and actively participate in sport again. As Alligatoah sings so beautifully: “I’m doing sport now, so amazing, next summer trial training” – because we find it difficult to make this decision. The resolution is always made quickly and in January, gym registrations shoot through the roof year after year – only to die down again in March at the latest. That would be funnier if the subscription didn’t run for a whole year. So the gyms earn money from this resolution, while the little man has to spend the remaining 9 months of the year wandering around the world with his untouched membership card in his wallet.
- Our tip: The resolution itself is not wrong, but instead of a gym membership, you should take a different direction, especially in January. How about a long walk on January 1, for example? On January 2, go jogging for 20 minutes, on January 3, do Pilates in front of the TV at home, etc.
3. healthy diet
We remain in the area of physical resolutions, as the desire for a healthy diet follows in third place. Whether it’s more vitamins, less meat or no junk food, the resolution to eat healthier has more facets than a disco ball.
4. lose weight
Fittingly, the plan to lose weight comes in fourth place. Be it to fit into your beloved jeans again, to conform to an ideal of beauty or simply to feel more comfortable in your own skin again. This resolution can also be successful if you approach it with a head for heights. And not turn your entire eating habits upside down from one day to the next. After all, humans are creatures of habit and usually find it difficult to change. That’s why you should approach every change in your habits step by step, so that it brings long-term benefits.
5. less stress
This is immediately followed by the resolution to avoid and reduce stress in the future. No wonder, as we Germans are known to suffer particularly from stress. Sometimes we create it ourselves and sometimes it comes to us from outside. Be it at work or in our private lives: More and more is demanded of us. This is particularly noticeable at the end of the year, for example, when we realize at Christmas with our family how contemplative doing nothing can be. In these moments, we realize: we want to do this more often, it’s good for us, it would be the ultimate resolution for next year!
6 – 10. stimulants, sleep, nature and work
Other popular resolutions are to consume less alcohol and cigarettes (6th and 7th place), to get more sleep (8th place) and, for some years now, to get out into nature more often (9th place) instead of in front of the screens of our devices. But we also want to change something at work (10th place). Be it because we work too often beyond the end of the working day or take work home with us. That’s simply not healthy. Is 5 pm the end of the day? Then put this time in your calendar and stick to it. The written word can help us to get things done sooner. Just like the goal of finally having a conversation about a pay rise. Write it down and follow through. Nothing can happen except that the request is turned down. But then at least you’ve tried and are at peace with yourself.
Picture series of the best New Year’s resolutions
That’s why we fail so often
We like to overdo things, otherwise we wouldn’t be faced with the question of what we should change in our lives every year. And that is precisely the reason why so many resolutions never had a real chance: We ask too much, even of ourselves. As already mentioned, humans are creatures of habit. If we want to change something, we need a fixed framework and concrete conditions. Because we can work with that. And we need realistic goals that fit in with our everyday lives. Otherwise, the plan cannot be put into practice and will not achieve anything in the long term. But don’t worry, resolutions can be implemented! You just have to tackle the changes with a little brainpower and a lot more willpower.
New Year’s resolutions work with these tricks
Every resolution needs a realistic framework. So if you want to do more sport, you should first ask yourself which sport you enjoy. Once you have found a sport, you should set yourself a time frame
So being more active three times a week could look like this:
- Attend a dance class on Friday evening,
- Take a long walk on Sunday
- and 10 minutes of gymnastics in the living room after work
Sounds more realistic than a gym subscription without a plan, doesn’t it?
If you want to eat healthier, you need the right preparation: look for recipes in advance that whet your appetite and curiosity. Choose restaurants in your area that you have never tried before but that promise healthy food.
Here too, change begins with preparation.
By taking these small steps, you are already working on a new life and won’t be overwhelmed by all the changes. Step by step, that’s the solution. Sounds simple, but it is. You don’t have to set off directly from your couch at home and climb the Zugspitze; a small hill is enough to get you started. If you have a goal in mind, even a big one, you should approach it in small steps to increase your chances of success.
But failures are also part of every big change. It will happen that you feel like stuffing your stomach with junk food even though you no longer want to do so. That’s okay. Plan for failure, because everyone has a bad day, but that doesn’t say anything about how strong we are as a whole. So fail, straighten your crown and keep going! New Year’s resolutions can also enrich us in the long term. They make us aware of what is important to us and what can safely disappear from our lives. They always offer us the opportunity to develop personally and to experience, learn and understand new things. If you seek change, you will find it. This requires a strong will and a strong impulse to turn your life around. Once you have done this and understood how it works, you can do anything!
