The Culture of Quitting: 3 Reasons We Give up on New Year's Resolutions

Happy 2026!

So yeah, my wife sent this to me the other day and it struck me for several reasons:

January 9th is typically when people call the quits on goals... that didn't take long!
There are industry-strategies that capitalize on our failures.

And btw, I love Scooter's!

Quitting is a popular option and a person who sticks to their goals is becoming a rare breed indeed.

Why? I believe there are three reasons and three solutions.

Reason: No momentum. It only takes 9 days because people don't come into the new year with any real momentum. They may have abandoned their routine during the holiday season and are burdened with another 15 pounds they didn't have going into the season.
Solution: Create momentum. In my therapy and coaching practice I focus on creating a momentum in the early fall. If you want a great January, you need a good October.
Action Step: Instead of creating pressure, create momentum. Give yourself a 30 days of figuring out how to make the time do commit to a new behavior even if you struggle.

Reason: People are predictable. The weight-loss industry is based on a yo-yo cycle. Imagine if you made money from this cycle? Sad but true. They often understand our patterns better than we do. Marketing strategies are a mix of psychology and repetition.
Solution: Take inventory. We usually struggle to manage our food, money, or time. Pick one and track your pattern. Where do you struggle? When do you thrive? Your patterns aren't just information, it is intel. Disrupting your pattern is more manageable if you actually understand it.
Action Step: Track your time, money, or food for a week and look for general patterns.

Reason: We set the bar too high. We set a resolution to go the gym 4-5 times per week but we are not even to going to the gym one day per week. How are we going to make the jump? People struggle to do the bare minimum.
Solution: Create easier goals. One of my coaching approaches is to create 'bare-minimums' in a person's life. The problem is that quitting is easy because we set the bar too high.
Action Step: Instead of setting an idealistic goal set a goal that is incredibly doable in the case that your week falls apart. 4-5 days in the gym is great, but commit to at least working out at home for 20 minutes at a minimum.

How are you holding yourself accountable in 2026?

Kyle

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