Be a geek and live in Tasmania: How to win at New Year’s resolutions

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58 percent of Australians broke their New Year’s resolutions in 2015; women more likely to fail

finder.com.au survey: sharing your goal with friends and using apps more likely to lead to success

finder.com.au’s guide to making resolutions you can keep!

December 29, 2015, Sydney, Australia – Technology and living in Tasmania have been revealed as the most likely contributors to success when it comes to seeing through your New Year’s Resolution, according to a new survey by one of Australia’s biggest comparison websites, finder.com.au

Aside from sharing your resolution on social media and using an app to help you on track, picking one goal only – rather than multiple – will set you on the right path.

The national survey of 1,059 respondents found that 58 percent of Australians – an estimated 11 million people – failed to fulfil their New Year’s resolutions this year, with women the more likely culprits (64 percent) compared to men (54 percent).

It took just three months for 15 percent of Australians to break their resolutions, while 40 percent had broken their promise by September 2015.

Of those who were unsuccessful, one in four Australians (25 percent) reported failure to keep track of their progress as the factor that led to this outcome. 21 percent of Australians failed because they made too many resolutions, while 15 percent said they forgot about their promise.

Bessie Hassan, Consumer Advocate at finder.com.au, says being realistic in your goal-setting goes a long way.

“Health and money-related goals will again be the most popular as we head into 2016, but the key to sticking with any resolution is to be realistic with what you can and can’t achieve. Don’t take on more than you can handle and, most importantly, put some thought into how you plan to reach your goal.”

“For example, if you’re looking to boost your health or fitness next year, consider what simple lifestyle changes you can make in your daily or weekly routine. If 2016 is the year you plan to save money towards a personal goal,  do your homework and spend some time comparing financial products online to find out what’s on offer to fast-track your savings.

“There’s also help at hand to assist with reaching your goals. Look into free apps to motivate you and keep you on track of your progress, and use social media to share your plans with your friends and family – doing so makes you accountable and therefore more likely to succeed. Good luck.”

State by state:

  • Tasmanians were the most successful goal-setters, with 46 percent of people seeing them through.

  • ACT residents were the worst at keeping resolutions with 74 percent failing, but the most likely to announce their goals publicly (25 percent)

  • Queenslanders were the least likely to share their New Year’s resolutions with friends, with only 12 percent doing so. They were, however, the most likely to have a money-related resolution (16 percent).

  • South Australians join ACT residents as the healthiest goal-setters, with 63 percent of resolutions relating to health and wellbeing.

  • West Australians were the least health conscious in their goal-setting (47 percent).

finder.com.au’s guide to making New Year’s resolutions you can keep!

  • Make one resolution. Having too many resolutions is why 21 percent of Australians fail to keep them.

  • Keep track of your progress with an app – one-quarter of New Year’s resolutions are broken because of a failure to track ongoing progress. This may also assist on the memory front – 15 percent of Aussies do not succeed because they forget about their resolutions.

  • Share it with your friends. It’s not official ‘til it’s on Facebook, and our research shows those who keep their resolutions to themselves are more likely to fail (64 percent).

  • Move to Tasmania. If you’re living in Tassie, you have a 46 percent chance of keeping your resolution, the highest rate in Australia.

  • Don’t sweat it. Less than half (42 percent) of all New Year’s Resolutions are kept. If you fail, take a break and then try again. Remember, you can set a goal at any time, not just during New Year.