Why We Don’t Stick to Things

Here are 10 reasons why we give up and what we can do about them

In our minds, we often instinctively rationalize away giving up or giving in. Next time, stop and analyze that process. Shutterstock

We all do it in some form: We tell ourselves we’re going to do something, and then end up not sticking to that plan. As the season of New Year’s resolutions is upon us, it’s worth reflecting on why this is.

Maybe some of these scenarios will sound familiar to you:

• You try to stick to a certain diet, end up breaking it in a day, and then abandon it.
• You try to work hard on a project and stop procrastinating, and then get distracted and your plan fails.
• You try to meditate (or do yoga, read, exercise, etc.) every morning, and then one morning you’re in a rush or are tired and skip it. Then you skip it again the next day, and eventually quit.
• You aim to stay on top of your email, or finally tackle that clutter, but your plan doesn’t even get off the ground.

So what’s going on? Are we just lazy people, with no discipline? Are we destined to spend life on the couch eating junk food, watching Netflix, and hating ourselves?