A new year, a new you.

Or so that is what most people wish for at the start of a new year when resolutions are made on everything from never swearing to quitting smoking to losing weight to simply being a better person.

'People believe in a fresh start. The start of a new year is when you have time to sit down and reflect,' said Dr Brian Yeo, a consultant psychiatrist at Mount Elizabeth Medical Centre.

'Thinking of resolutions is already a good thing because it means you have the motivation to change.'

However, as we all know, resolutions are made to be broken. Few people can translate their good intentions into positive actions, no matter how strong or well-meaning their resolve is.

'Very few people manage to make a permanent change. People don't think through how they're going to make the change or they set themselves too big a goal,' said Ms Shona Lowes, a clinical psychologist at Equilibria Child and Family Psychological Services.

Dr Adrian Wang, a consultant psychiatrist at Gleneagles Medical Centre, said: 'When people lose momentum, it's because they have made it too complicated.'

The trick, apparently, is to keep your resolution simple and to draw up a plan.

Dr Yeo advised people who make resolutions to phrase them in concrete, quantifiable terms.

'Instead of saying 'I want to be a better father', say 'I want to spend x amount of time with my children',' he suggested.

After you have set out your resolutions, be it on paper, your diary or your phone, start on it immediately.

Ms Lowes said: 'If you start off well, you can be motivated to continue. For example, if you resolve to go to the gym twice a week and you do, you feel quite good about yourself and you're motivated to keep going.'

Break your resolution down into a series of realistic goals.

'Resolution making is just goal setting,' said Dr Wang.

'Set yourself some achievable targets. No one can lose 10kg in a month but 1kg, that can be done.'

Failure should not precipitate failure.

'Always pick yourself off the ground or you'll be back to what you were in 2008,' said Dr Wang.

To avoid lapsing into old habits, Ms Lowes suggested that you think through all possibilities and situations involved in a resolution to prepare for setbacks.

This is especially important for resolutions concerning smoking or dieting.

For example, if you plan to quit smoking, you should identify what triggers you to smoke and devise ways to avoid or neutralise them.

Ms Lowes added that hypnotherapy may be useful for people wanting to quit smoking or lose weight.

Hypnotherapy is used to prompt a patient towards a healthy way of living by enabling him to fall into a deep level of relaxation so that his subconscious mind can accept new, empowering beliefs.

During hypnotherapy, a patient is taken through relaxation techniques with a series of mental images and suggestions intended to change behaviours and alleviate symptoms.

As you progress through the year, chart and celebrate your successes and reward yourself.

If your resolution was to exercise more, for instance, you can pamper yourself with a massage or invest in some nifty sports gear.

The experts said that like every other aspect of human interaction, a social network is vital to help you keep to your resolutions.

Tell your friends and family about your plans and not only will they cheer you on and keep you in check, but they may also join you and make the going less tough.

However, there is still no substitute for dogged determination and strong motivation when it comes to keeping to the resolution, experts said.

Dr Wang said: 'There's no magic formula. If there was, there wouldn't still be smokers.'

Small resolutions, big successes

Made your New Year's resolution riding on the inebriated high of booze, fireworks and New Year cheer? Now comes the hard part - keeping it. Here are tips on how to turn that dream of a new, better you into reality.

• Identify what you want to do clearly
  Instead of declaring you want to be as slim as Fann Wong, set a clear goal, for example, to lose 3kg by the end of the year.
  
  
• Set realistic goals
  Psychiatrist Brian Yeo said: 'Start with small resolutions. Success begets success. Once you succeed at one, you can do more.'
  
  
• Tell all and sundry your plans
  Psychologist Shona Lowes said: 'By actually saying your resolutions out loud to other people, it makes you want to follow through on what you said. If you share your plans with friends and family, they can support you and reinforce what it is you're trying to do.'

• Reward yourself
  Be nice to yourself even when you have achieved just a small bit of your goal. Splurge on a new dress if you have, say, lost some weight. It will motivate you further.
  
  
• Plan to cope with setbacks
  Dr Lowes said: 'If you want to eat more healthily, you should identify difficult foods and situations or times when you're most likely to eat unhealthy foods.'
  
  
• Make no more than three resolutions
  Psychiatrist Adrian Wang said: 'Anything more than that and you make it complicated for yourself as you're trying to do too many things at once.'
  

This article was first published in Mind Your Body, The Straits Times on Jan 1, 2009.