Have you eaten an incredible amount of food, almost daily, since Thanksgiving? Does your house have so many new presents you’re stressing over where to put everything? Did you forget where your health club or at-home treadmill is located? Are you on a first name basis with the shopping mall employees?

If you answered yes to one or more of these questions, you are probably on your way to making the dreaded, but always popular, New Year’s resolutions. Maybe you already wrote down a list of goals and posted them where friends and relatives can see. Or maybe you have a secret resolution list in your head and don’t tell a sole about it.

Nevertheless, if you ask people about their New Year’s resolutions sometime in February, most everyone will give you a sheepish look and try to change the subject.

I was curious as to why people’s New Year’s resolutions often seem to fail, so I called upon Buffalo GroveDr. Deborah H. Stern, a clinical psychologist practicing at Perakis, Resis and Associates in Vernon Hills and Schaumberg. According to Dr. Stern, “New Year’s Resolutions are a great opportunity to reflect on the past year and think about changes that would improve your life and future.” resident,

Even though people really do mean to stick to their new goals, following through is the hardest part. “Change is a process,” expresses Stern. “It takes time and effort and is actually difficult.”

Dr. Stern says that New Year’s resolutions should be attainable. “It’s important for these new goals to be reasonable and reachable. By breaking down your resolutions into realistic, mini goals and steps you have more opportunities to be successful.” She adds, “You want to feel good every step of the way and not be upset by a setback. Success breeds success and it will feed your motivation to continue.”

“You also need a good support system, whether it’s a friend, spouse or outside help,” Stern shares. “Think about what support you’ll need to help make a real change.”

“One of the most valuable things to do with any goal is to journal about WHY the goal is important to you,” Stern stresses. “Write down what the benefit of keeping this goal would be. You can keep this in your back pocket or purse and refer to it when necessary.”

“Of course, you don’t have to wait until the beginning of the year to make changes in your life,” states Dr. Stern.

Any more tips? “Don’t make too many resolutions at once and you should prioritize which ones to do now.” Lastly, Dr. Stern notes that “people should congratulate themselves for taking the first step toward a goal and acknowledge each step along the way because change is hard.”

I took Dr. Stern’s advice and I am trying to keep my New Year’s resolutions realistic this year: Eat a few vegetables once in a while, file a paper or two every so often and cook dinner sometimes. I will definitely applaud myself when I reach these goals.

Have a wonderful new year and good luck with your hopefully reachable resolutions!

By the way, if you are reading this and thinking, “Hey, I know someone who should be written about in the paper,” then please tell me all about it. I can be contacted at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

© 2007 Susan Dubin, Buffalo Grove, Illinois