By Bob Snyder
Every January people everywhere write down goals. The classic New Year’s resolution list captures what we want to achieve by year’s end:
Lose weight. Get promoted. Read more books. Save more money.
But year after year the same pattern plays out: most of these goals are left behind.
The data is clear. Only about 9% of people who set New Year’s resolutions actually achieve them by year’s end. Many give up before the first month is over.
Roughly 23% quit by the end of the first week and 43% by the end of January.
Research across multiple studies confirms that most resolutions fail quickly and completely even when intentions are high.
If goals fail so often, how do we explain that? A big reason lies in where motivation comes from and how human behavior is sustained over time. Goals are outcomes we want to reach. They are externally focused and future-oriented. Standards are internally guided expectations that shape everyday behavior. In other words, goals answer what we want to achieve, while standards define how we act every single day.
The Problem With Goals
Goals are powerful in theory but weak in practice for at least three reasons.
They depend on motivation that