2021 is here (phew!), and traditionally, we attempt to start the new year with a fresh perspective and sharp mindset. These New Year Resolutions can range from career advancement, improving lifestyle habits, or developing a new skill. We can likely draw on our own experiences and agree that many of us tend to (unfortunately) give up and dismiss the goal setting altogether. Less than 8% of people actually stick to their New Year's Resolutions each year, suggesting that perhaps the goals are unattainable and unrealistic, to begin with. Adherence is not solely attributed to a lack of commitment, but rather that our goals have no framework, no backup plan, no accountability, and no strategy. Without meeting these criteria, we will find ourselves lacking a real change in behaviour, thus not meeting our goals. We need to eventually act upon that goal in order to achieve success, right?

Easier said than done. 

How many New Year Resolutions have you made in the past, only to give up and try again next year? Do you remember the challenges and the discomfort? Or what about pivoting back and forth between wanting something so bad, to developing a distaste for it?  

I do. 

And it’s part of growth. But still, how can we ‘stay the course’? And reach the goals that we’ve put all this effort towards? 

Below is a breakdown of why most of us tend to be unsuccessful, and what we’re doing wrong when setting our goals. Understanding these important concepts will improve your adherence and give your goal a blueprint for success.

Why Do We Tend To Fail?

We can appreciate that simply stating that we want X/Y/Z as a goal isn’t enough. Several studies discuss this as the “Intention-Behaviour Gap'', which essentially means, “put your money where your mouth is''.  Approximately only 30-40% of what we intend to do actually translates to affiliated and modified behaviour (Faries, 2016). Intention precedes action, and we must act on intentions to create a change in behaviour. The only way we can achieve a goal is to do the work, which may be a hard pill to swallow. Taking shortcuts is ill-advised, as even medication won’t work unless you take it.

If there was a goal that you just reflected on, you may distinctly remember the struggle. The discomfort that we feel tends to indicate that we were likely on the right path to completion. The Transtheoretical Model suggests that several relapses can happen before reaching a goal. “Success is never a straight line” comes to mind. 

 The Five Steps To Behaviour Change are phases (Pre-Contemplation, Contemplation, Preparation, Action, & Maintenance) that you can categorize your behaviour in. Most people find themselves relapsing between the Preparation, Action, and Maintenance phases several times before successfully remaining in the Maintenance phase for longer than 6 months (Lamorte, 2019). Unfortunately, most people don’t recognize that although a relapse can happen at any of these stages, facing a continuous relapse is a normal part of the process, and could signify that our current approach needs to be reviewed. Something isn’t working, and the plan simply needs a tweak. Going back to the drawing board to reaffirm the ‘why’ and ‘how’ could increase compliance and project you closer to the goal. 

A goal starts as a mental representation of the desired outcome, and designing a plan for how those goals will be achieved is an important part of bringing that dream to reality. For some, simply identifying a goal is hard enough, let alone designing a plan for one. People know that they at least want to achieve something within a specific area, but are afraid to pull the trigger out of fear of failure. For others, disclosing a specific goal is not the challenge; it's defining the actionable steps that pose more of a roadblock. 

Over the course of my weight loss journey (read about my fitness journey here, I can tell you that there were at least 100 times that I told myself that I would lose weight. But I merely said it in my head. I didn’t look into healthier food alternatives (that would be part of the Preparation phase), nor did I go to the gym as often as I said I would (Action phase). I needed to get my ducks in a row if this was truly going to work. And it did. 

There are several strategies that we can use to identify not only the specific steps to behavior change but also how to sustain those behaviours during day to day challenges.

S.M.A.R.T Goal Setting

Many have heard of the S.M.A.R.T. Goal Setting template, which many businesses and organizations have used to unify employees and stakeholders towards common business goals. Meeting the criteria of a S.M.A.R.T. goal includes specificity, the time frame in which to achieve said goal, and how it will be measured, without judgement. Well-defined goals are important because they help us focus on what truly matters with far less distraction. 

S.M.A.R.T. stands for: 

S - Specific 

M - Measurable 

A - Attainable 

R - Realistic or Relevant

T - Time-bound

An example of a S.M.A.R.T. goal is “I will engage in 30 min of aerobic physical activity 5 days a week for the next four weeks”. 

This example shows specificity (aerobic physical activity) in a measurable way (the individual can use physiological adaptations, such as improved resting heart rate or rate of perceived exertion scales). The individual would acknowledge that it is attainable and realistic (30 min is believed to be attainable to that individual, given their current lifestyle), and it’s within a declared time-frame (four weeks). 

A limitation to S.M.A.R.T. Goal Setting is that it does not specify how a goal will be implemented. The 30 min of aerobic physical activity could be spent walking, swimming, or cycling. The how is an important aspect to the goal, and should be declared when creating an Action Plan. And although it’s not part of the acronym, intrinsic motivation is also a criteria that must be met. Simply put, if you don’t want to do something, you would choose to not do it.

Action Planning

Lacking an action plan can often lead to a goal unmet. Having a plan in place can act much like a checklist, outlining how the important steps that are to be taken, all while building your discipline and self efficacy. This plan should be conceived and developed by the goal-setter, where you or they can disclose details with others for accountability, as well as designating a time-frame for execution. After the plan is drafted, for added assurance, the goal setter can review and rate a score on how well this plan can be executed (1-10). If the plan is scored anything less than a 7, modifying the action plan to something more realistic would be recommended. Why put forth all this effort if you’re not confident that you can do what’s necessary? The entire plan’s success is based on the goal setter’s perceived self efficacy, being honest and forthcoming will give the plan some validity. This plan is also not set in stone, and can/should be reviewed periodically. 

Action Planning has been well studied and utilized in primary care settings. An action plan intervention study was created for patients with coronary heart disease, along with their physicians. Using a form, physicians asked patients to identify a general physical activity goal, and create an action plan for accomplishing that goal. The action plan was designed to promote enhanced self efficacy and confidence towards completion of that goal. Three weeks after the action plan was created, 53% reported making consistent behavior changes that aligned with their action plans. The physicians also commented that designing the action plan only took an average of 7 minutes to complete. It was demonstrated that those patients that were involved in creating the action plan were also most likely to implement that plan (Bailey, 2019). Three weeks and 50% reportedly more consistent behavior is a minimal time-frame with a large return on investment, simply because a plan was in place. 

Coping Plans 

Planning a coping strategy involves anticipating life’s miniature hurdles and developing a way to stick to your program, while tending to your day to day obligations, minimal distraction. Imagine your action plan included walking regularly for 30 min outdoors, and one day it starts raining before you can head outside. That would be a perfect opportunity to use the poor weather as a legitimate excuse to not commit to your action plan. An appropriate coping strategy for our example would be to provide a reasonable alternative in the anticipation of bad weather, such as indoor stair climbing or an exercise video.

We can all imagine legitimate (and non-legitimate) reasons to not commit to an activity. In my opinion, this is where most goal setting tends to fail.  We fail to declare a backup plan, and it can be too easy to find the reasons not exercise. Do this enough times, and we suddenly find ourselves back in the Preparation phase, which can make anyone feel as if they are starting from scratch. 

But you wouldn’t actually be starting from the beginning. We just learned what worked, and what didn’t. When this occurs, optimally and objectively observe the current approach and modify accordingly. This moment of observation can mitigate a potential relapse, keeping you on track, thus projecting you closer to achieving the goal. Using both action and coping plans for behavior change can promote greater benefits than the action plans alone (Bailey, 2019).  

Approach versus Avoidance Type Goals

There is significant power behind the language used to describe every goal. There is a difference between “I'm going to eat a cup of low-fat yogurt for my afternoon snack”, and “I'm not going to eat junk food as a snack.” Which statement sounds more palatable? The first statement is an example of a positively framed Approach Goal, which can generate less guilt and deprivation. The second statement is an example of an Avoidance Type Goal, which can generate more guilt and deprivation. Motivation is shown to be enhanced when using an Approach Type goal, as the language used is more desirable when trying to move away from undesired outcomes and towards a positive one (Bailey, 2019).  Both goals discuss eating a snack, but they differ emotionally.  One sounds more rewarding, and the other sounds punishing. A selective choice of words can further persistence, whatever their goal may be. Be nice to yourself.

Performance vs Mastery Goals

As we know from the S.M.A.R.T. acronym,  goals should be measurable and held to your own definition of the gold standard. Peter Drucker, a well known business and management consultant once said “whatever gets measured, gets managed”. The way in which we self monitor and measure our success will greatly influence our ability to achieve the goal. We need to see some form of evidence that the effort is worth it, and that the plan is working. 

A goal can be performance or mastery based. A performance based goal involves judging and evaluating one’s ability (can they do it, or not, with difficulty, or with ease). Measuring your performance can influence your readiness to stay in pursuit. The inability to achieve a performance based goal can be easily interpreted as failure, thus lowering one’s self esteem (Bailey, 2019). It’s unfortunate, but natural, to assume that since we cannot perform that task momentarily, that we should abandon all future efforts. 

Mastery goals involve attaining the competence to do something. Even if we fail at a mastery based goal, this failure is viewed as a natural part of learning and can promote active engagement. Self improvement, confidence and knowledge will naturally increase. Bailey (2019) suggests that an appropriate approach would be to supplement performance based goals with a mastery based goal. Provide yourself with evidence that the plan is working, and learn new things along the way. Competency in that area will likely come in handy again some day. 

Level of Difficulty 

It may seem counter-intuitive, but the more challenging the goal, the better the outcome. A more difficult learning goal leads to greater cognitive effort to acquire strategies than an easier goal would (Latham, 2008). A goal that presents moderate difficulty can produce higher levels of performance, (Latham, 2008). If we were committed to changing our lifestyle, for whatever reason, we can be very inclined and persistent despite the impending challenges. 

Contrarily, if the action plan for a goal is too simple, it can produce a minimal amount of effort, bearing zero influence to improve competence or self esteem. In my opinion, the only person that can define the level of appropriate difficulty will be the goal setter, as their commitment will be defined by how intrinsically motivated they are, and whether they have the efficacy to do so. 

Conclusion

Achieving a goal is possible. If we are unsuccessful, it may be due to lack of strategy and planning. It’s insufficient to simply make a statement regarding our desired outcomes. Instead, we have to recognize our current position within the Transtheoretical Model, and make the necessary preparations to adopt the necessary behavior. The individual should be proactive when outlining their plans for success; the why, when, and how. A standard of measurement is useful, as it provides feedback on whether our efforts are producing change, no matter how minimal. Creating accountability and backup plans can further our trajectory. We must analyze whether our goals are disproportionately out of reach, and make timely adjustments to the plan. The language we use when phrasing our goals can affect us emotionally, and will either elicit a positive or a negative response. If our motivation is intrinsically oriented, we may be surprised by how well we can handle the challenges that accompany changes to behavior. With respect to everything that is involved when setting a goal, we can’t be afraid to go back to the drawing board. 

Sources: 

1. Bailey, Ryan R, PhD.”Goal Setting and Action Planning for Health Behavior Change”.Am J Lifestyle Med. 2019 Nov-Dec; 13(6): 615–618

2. Hackfort, D. et al. “The Routledge International Encyclopedia of Sport and Exercise Psychology”. Published by Routledge, April 2020

3. Faries, M, PhD. “Why We Don’t ‘Just Do It’: Understanding the Intention-Behavior Gap in Lifestyle Medicine''. Am J Lifestyle Med. 2016 Sep-Oct; 10(5): 322–329

4. LaMorte, W, PhD. “The Transtheoretical Model  (Stages of Change)”. https://sphweb.bumc.bu.edu/otlt/mph-modules/sb/behavioralchangetheories/behavioralchangetheories6.html Boston University School of Public Health, Sept 9 2019. 

5. Transtheoretical Model Image; Wikipedia; :Transtheoretical Model - Stages of change.jpg, October 27 2013 CC BY-SA 3.0

6. S.M.A.R.T. Goals Image. https://www.recbound.com/recruitment-agency-blog/example-smart-goals-for-recruiters

7. Latham, G et al. “The Effects of Learning Goal Difficulty Level and Cognitive Ability on Performance”. Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science 40(4):220-229 Oct 2008

Book a free 30min online consultation with a Registered Kinesiologist and learn how you can alleviate and improve your low back pain. 

Francesca McKenzie is a Registered Kinesiologist and Personal Trainer of 15 years with experience in rehabilitation, strength & conditioning, performance and wellness.