Ball Drops, New Habits Picked Up

When the ball drops, it’s your chance to pick up new habits or a new life.

“I’m going to try to not yell at my mom as much, and try to clean up my room more,” Sasha Rifkin said.

“My New Year’s resolution has to do with the Rose Bowl. I’m going to be the best fan I can be along with the other fans so we can beat Wisconsin on the 2nd,” Kevin Robertson said.

“No more alcohol,” Pat Ross said.

Forty-five percent of people make New Year’s resolutions. Some of the most popular are to lose weight, eat healthier, and quit smoking. Here’s what some News Channel 3 followers had to say on Facebook about their 2012 goals:

1. Stress less 2. Perform standup at an open mic once a week 3. Make all future purchases labeled “made in the usa” 4. Pay off my student loans.

Seeing that studies show less than half of people actually achieve their New Year’s resolutions, here are a few tips and tricks to make sure this is the year you fall into that category:

1. Write it down (Studies show you feel more committed to something if you actually write it down. It serves as a contract to yourself.) 2. Be specific (It’s a lot easier to eat an apple every day or only have Starbucks twice a week than it is to just “eat healthy” all year.) 3. Make it public (If you tell your family and friends your goals, chances are they will support you and remind you when you start losing motivation.) 4. Build up to it (Aiming to run a marathon by March when you’ve only ever ran a half mile at the gym is a bit ambitious. Aim for a 5K by March, and perhaps a marathon by the fall.)

Doubters say resolutions have no chance.

“People start out saying they’re going to exercise, then they stop,” John Menneci said.

Skeptics say they’ll be difficult to achieve.

“Sometimes my mom makes me really mad and sometimes I’m too tired to clean up my room,” Rifkin said.

The optimists of the world, however, say, with discipline, anything’s possible.

“It’s a state of mind. You try to keep your mind positive,” Lauren Paye said.

Perhaps something we can try to do all year.

“I think you should make (resolutions) throughout the year, not wait for New Year’s Eve to do that,” Ross said.

If that’s too ambitious for some, New Year’s is a perfect start. Better late than never.