A new year beautifully symbolizes a new chapter opening in the book that is your life. But while so many people like you aspire to achieve ambitious goals, only 12% of you will ever experience the taste of victory. Sound bad? It is. 156 million people (that’s 156,000,000) will probably give up on their resolution before you can say “confetti.” Keep on reading to learn why New Year’s resolutions fail (and how to succeed).
新的一年美好象征着崭新的生活篇章。许多人会立下雄心勃勃的目标，可最终能实现目标的却只有12%。听起来不尽人意吧？千真万确。全球1.56亿人等不及喝彩就放弃了坚持他们的新年计划。为什么新年计划总是失败？怎样保证计划成功实现呢？请继续往下读。

Note: Since losing weight is the most common New Year’s resolution, I chose to focus on weight loss (but these principles can be applied to just about any goal you think of — make it work for you!).
注意：鉴于“减肥”是最常见的新年计划，我重点以此为例。不过下面这些方法也适用于其他目标，试试吧！

1. You’re treating a marathon like a sprint
你把“马拉松”当成了“短跑”

Slow and steady habit change might not be sexy, but it’s a lot more effective than the “I want it ALL and I want it NOW!” mentality. Small changes stick better because they aren’t intimidating (if you do it right, you’ll barely even notice them!).
循序渐进的改变或许不那么风光，却比“立刻就要得到”的心态更奏效。小改变更容易坚持，因为它们不会让你心生畏惧；而且如果方法得当，你甚至都难以察觉这些变化！

If you have a lot of bad habits today, the last thing you need to do is remodel your entire life overnight. Want to lose weight? Stop it with the crash diets and excessive exercise plans. Instead of following a super restrictive plan that bans anything fun, add one positive habit per week. For example, you could start with something easy like drinking more water during your first week. The following week, you could move on to eating 3 fruits and veggies every day. And the next week, you could aim to eat a fistful of protein at every meal.
如果你现在有很多坏毛病，最不可能的就是一夜之间焕然一新。想减肥吗？那就别再搞什么速成节食和极端锻炼计划了。与其遵循毫无乐趣的严苛计划，不如选择每周养成一个好习惯。例如，你可以先从简单做起，第一周只要记得多喝水就行；到下一周，你可以尝试每天吃3个水果并多吃蔬菜；再下一周，你可以试着限制每餐的蛋白质摄入量。

2. You put the cart before the horse
你本末倒置

“Supplementing” a crappy diet is stupid, so don’t even think about it. Focus on the actions that produce the overwhelming amount of results. If it’s not important, don’t worry about it.
多吃垃圾食品很不好，所以想都别想。请选择能带来益处的计划，至于不重要的部分，那就直接忽略掉吧。

3. You don’t believe in yourself
你不相信自己

A failure to act can cripple you before you leave the starting line. If you’ve tried (and failed) to set a New Year’s resolution (or several) in the past, I know it might be hard to believe in yourself. Doubt is a nagging voice in your head that will resist personal growth with every ounce of its being. The only way to defeat doubt is to believe in yourself. Who cares if you’ve failed a time or two? This year, you can try again (but better this time).
没有行动意味着在起跑线上就输掉了。如果你以前制定过新年计划却未能实现，我相信，你肯定很受挫。内心喋喋不休的怀疑会一点一点阻碍个人成长。说实话，你输了一次还是两次，又有谁会在乎呢？今年，何不再试一次？相信今年能做得更好！

4. Too much thinking, not enough doing
想得太多，做得不够

The best self-help book in the world can’t save you if you fail to take action. Yes, seek inspiration and knowledge, but only as much as you can realistically apply to your life. If you can put just one thing you learn from every book or article you read into practice, you’ll be on the fast track to success.
如果不采取行动，就算世上最好的自助书也帮不了你。没错，你要寻求灵感与知识，可只有实际运用才能见效。如果你能把从书籍或文章中学到的知识加以实践，那你离成功也不远了。

5. You’re in too much of a hurry
你太急躁

If it was quick-and-easy, everybody would do it, so it’s in your best interest to exercise your patience muscles.
如果事情能又快又轻松地搞定，那么谁都能成功了。所以，你最好学会耐心。

6. You don’t enjoy the process
你不喜欢过程

Is it any wonder people struggle with their weight when they see eating as a chore and exercise as a dreadful bore? The best fitness plan is one that causes the least interruption to your daily life. The goal isn’t to add stress to your life, but rather to remove it.
有些人想减肥却又忍不住吃东西，还视运动为眼中钉，很奇怪吧？最好的健身计划应该不会给日常生活造成不便。毕竟，制定目标不是为了给生活施压，而是为了减压。

The best of us couldn’t bring ourselves to do something we hate consistently, so make getting in shape fun, however you’ve gotta do it. That could be participating in a sport you love, exercising with a good friend or two, joining a group exercise class so you can meet new people, or giving yourself one “free day” per week where you forget about your training plan and exercise in any way you please.
就连最优秀的人也无法做好自己总是讨厌的事。所以，不管采取什么方式，请试着让减肥充满乐趣。你可以参加喜欢的运动、和朋友一起锻炼、参加健身班并结识新朋友，或每周给自己放天假，暂且放开锻炼计划。

7. You’re trying too hard
你过犹不及

Unless you want to experience some nasty cravings, don’t deprive your body of pleasure. The more you tell yourself you can’t have a food, the more you’re going to want it. As long as you’re making positive choices 80-90% of the time, don’t sweat the occasional indulgence.
除非你愿意被欲望折磨，否则别自找罪受。你越告诉自己不能吃什么，就会变得越想吃那东西。只要你大部分时候能做出正确选择，偶尔开荤开戒也没什么。

8. You don’t track your progress
你没有跟踪进度

Keeping a written record of your training progress will help you sustain an “I CAN do this” attitude. All you need is a notebook and a pen. For every workout, record what exercises you do, the number of repetitions performed, and how much weight you used if applicable. Your goal? Do better next time. Improving your best performance on a regular basis offers positive feedback that will encourage you to keep going.
记录下锻炼进度有助于保持“我能行”的心态。你只要准备笔纸，每次记下自己做了哪些运动、做了多少次以及当时的体重。至于目标，那就是争取下次做得更好。按部就班提高最佳表现可以创造积极反馈，进而鼓励你继续努力。

9. You have no social support
你缺乏社会支持

It can be hard to stay motivated when you feel alone. The good news? You’re not alone: far from it. Post a status on Facebook asking your friends if anybody would like to be your gym or accountability buddy. If you know a co-worker who shares your goal, try to coordinate your lunch time and go out together so you’ll be more likely to make positive decisions. Join a support group of like-minded folks on Facebook, LinkedIn, or elsewhere on the internet. Strength in numbers is powerful, so use it to your advantage.
只身一人很难保持充满动力。好在你并非单枪匹马：你可以在Facebook上邀请好友搭伴一起运动。如果有同事恰好跟你一样，可以趁午餐时间互相沟通，从而做出积极决定。你也可以在Facebook、LinkedIn或其他网站上加入相关小组。团结就是力量，好好利用起来吧。

10. You know your what but not your why
你知道自己想要什么，却不清楚为什么想要

The biggest reason why most New Year’s resolutions fail: you know what you want but you not why you want it.
很多新年计划失败的最大原因在于——你知道自己想要什么，但不清楚为什么想要。

Yes: you want to get fit, lose weight, or be healthy… but why is your goal important to you? For example:
的确：你想要减肥健身或更健康，但为什么这对你而言很重要呢？例如：

Do you want to be fit so you can be a positive example that your children can admire and look up to?
你想要锻炼，是因为你希望给子女树立值得钦佩的好榜样吗？

Do you want to lose fat so you’ll feel more confident and sexy in your body than ever before?
你想要减肥，是因为你觉得减肥后会更自信迷人吗？

Do you want to be healthy so you’ll have increased clarity, energy, and focus that would carry over into every single aspect of your life?
你想要健康，这样你会更加精力充沛并清晰专注，然后过好生活的点点滴滴吗？

Whether you’re getting in shape because you want to live longer, be a good example, boost your energy, feel confident, have an excuse to buy hot new clothes, or increase your likelihood of getting laid (hey, I’m not here to judge) is up to you. Forget about any preconceived notions and be true to yourself.
不管你健身是为了活得更久、树立榜样、提高活力、增加自信、买漂亮衣服，还是单纯为了变得性感，都没问题。别去管那些先入为主的想法，真实做你自己吧。

The more specific you can make your goal,
制定的计划越详细，

The more vivid it will be in your imagination,
预想情形也就越逼真；

The more encouraged you’ll be,
越是自我激励，

The more likely it is you will succeed (because yes, you CAN do this!).
就越有可能取得成功。因为，你能行！