Spend less. Save more. Eat less. Exercise more. You know the drill. 2015 is almost upon us and it’s clean-slate time again. Time to write a fresh list of New Year’s resolutions – ones you’ll actually keep this time, the whole year through. Maybe.
See, it’s that last part that’s tricky: sticking to your resolutions. Some 40 percent of Americans make New Year’s resolutions, but only about 8 percent of us achieve them, according to a study by the University of Scranton.
To help you make good on your goals for 2015, whether you want to get physically or financially fit or both — or just to be a better, happier you all-around — these inspiring TED Talks will motivate you to stick to your resolutions and, hopefully, see them through. Best of luck and don’t give up! We’re rooting for you, too.
1. Emily Balcetis: Why Some People Find Exercise Harder Than Others
Every year at the start of January, millions of Americans pledge to shed extra pounds and, with hard work and determination, many do. Meanwhile, others don’t – yours truly included. By Valentine’s Day, as social psychologist Emily Balcetis points out in her thought-provoking talk, many already break their New Year’s weight loss goals. Then they feel defeated and give up.
You might think people don’t attain their ideal weight because they fail to plan and execute effective diet and exercise regimes. Or maybe it seems as though they’re too lazy and to get up off the couch and move. But Balcetis posits out that perhaps they simply harbor the wrong view of exercise. The less in shape a person is, she says, the more likely he is to perceive exercise as difficult. The trick is to change your attitude about exercise and to “keep your eyes on the prize.” Hyper focus on the goal in front of you, Balcetis suggests, not on how hard it is to achieve. Your attitude could really determine your altitude.
