The Science and Benefits of Goal Setting
From setting new organizational goals to New Year’s resolutions, January is often a time of setting an intention for what we want to achieve throughout the year. In this week's article, we look at the
The History of New Year's Resolutions
One of the first noted instances of celebrating New Year’s Day and setting resolutions was done by the ancient Babylonians over 4,000 years ago. This occurred during their religious festival called Akitu, where they would make promises to the gods. Whether or not they achieved those promises would determine whether or not they fell in or out of favor of those gods in the following year.
These promises are now considered an early building block to modern New Year’s resolutions. Similar early goal setting could be seen with the ancient Romans, making promises to the god Janus in January following the early development of the modern calendar. In early Christianity, the new year was a time to reflect on wrongdoing that took place in the previous year, and to develop ways to do better in the coming years.
Different cultures may have historical traditions built into their New Year’s celebrations as well. Keeping a clean house in the beginning of the year in Ireland symbolizes being ready for a fresh start in the new year.
As for written records, one of the earliest instances of written reflection of intentions for the following year came from the religious texts of Scottish memoirist Anne Halkett in 1671. One resolution she wrote, which came from biblical verse, was “I will not offend any more.”
Understanding Modern Resolutions
According to Pew Research Center, three out of every ten Americans set at least one resolution at the beginning of the year, with 49% of individuals who set resolutions being between the ages of 18-29. This shows a higher popularity in younger generations when it comes to goal setting. Age was the biggest differentiating factor when it came to likelihood to set resolutions, with only modest difference in goal setting when categorized by gender, race, ethnicity, or partisanship.
Of the people who set at least one New Year’s resolution, 79% reported that their resolution was related to health, exercise, or diet. Other popular categories included money & finance, relationships, career, hobbies, and personal interests.
For a full understanding of resolution setting, we also need to look at the effectiveness of the practice. According to a poll by Forbes Health in 2023, it takes less than four months for most Americans to give up on their resolutions. A study by Columbia University reports that less than 10% of people are successful in accomplishing the goals they set.
Why Resolutions Can Fail
Researchers report that some of the main reasons resolutions fail are that they are too general and lack measurability, they are too unrealistic, no clear plan is set to achieve them, people lose motivation and interest, or chosen changes are too drastic and overwhelming.
Developed by Psychologists Prochaska and DiClemente in 1984, The Transtheoretical Model (TTM) of behavioral change can be broken down into five easy-to-follow steps: precontemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, and maintenance. Resolutions may also be prone to failing when an individual is not at the right step within the TTM to set a concrete goal. In other words, they have not done the precontemplation, contemplation, or preparation necessary to be ready to take action.
How to Make Goals More Effective
One suggestion to make your resolutions more effective is to look at your “why” of setting the intention. Although people may consider setting a goal because they feel like it is what they should do, or have been influenced by the people around them, many people skip the step of identifying what is in the goal for them. Will achieving this goal improve your quality of life? Will it help you feel better, or get you closer to achieving a large, long-term goal?
In order to combat the common pitfall of setting unrealistic goals, it is recommended to set smaller, incremental goals instead of focusing on a large, long-term goal. One of the most effective ways to achieve goals is to set new habits. However, new habits are not created overnight.
It is reported that it takes an average of 66 days to successfully build a new habit. Focusing on being dedicated to one specific new habit, instead of trying to make multiple changes, is likely to be more effective in regards to successfully achieving your goals. To show an example, if you are looking to improve your health, it may be more effective to set the singular goal of including more fruits and vegetables in your daily meals in comparison to setting the combined goal to eat healthier, workout more, drink more water, and get more sleep.
Regarded as one of the most successful methods of goals setting, the SMART goal method was developed by George T. Doran in 1981. SMART is an acronym used to stand for specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. When using this method, individuals must decide on a clear goal, how it will be measured, reflect on if it is realistically attainable, make sure it is relevant to their lifestyle, and define the time-span in which the goal will be achieved.
An example of a SMART goal in regards to health and wellness is: I will add at least one serving of vegetables to my dinner five days a week for the next three months in order to work towards my overall goal of living a healthier life.
In regards to setting goals in the workplace, in 1968 Edward Locke developed a method to help others keep resolutions and goals accurate and measurable. He presented five key principles of goal setting, including: clarity, challenge, commitment, feedback, and complexity.
The Science of Goal Setting
If goal setting is often unsuccessful, and requires such a high degree of thought, intention, and planning, why do we continue to set goals? Resolutions and goal setting creates a roadmap of where we would like to head, and helps us to develop the steps to get there. Studies have shown that setting goals leads to higher self-confidence, self-esteem, autonomy, and motivation, as well as an increased likelihood for success.
Individuals with a goal-oriented approach to the things that they do are more likely to perceive failures as temporary setbacks, and have an overall more positive approach towards life. Resolutions and intentions also lead us to a state of constant reflection and self-evaluation, which keeps us accountable as we work towards fulfilling our goals, boosting self-reliance and efficacy.
Setting small goals allows us to manipulate the effect of dopamine to our advantage. Dopamine, defined by Psychology Today as the “feel-good neurotransmitter”, spikes when we do the things we set out to achieve. This spike in dopamine makes us want to complete other tasks, which is why many people keep to-do lists. When we break down a resolution or long-term goal into smaller, actionable goals, we are more likely to accomplish them, and feel motivated to continue completing other tasks to get us to the final resolution.
Meet Your Bioprocess Goals with HPNE
At High Purity New England, a Getinge Company, their goal is to match their customer with the ideal bioprocessing solutions for their unique needs from discovery to commercial launch. They carry a range of industry leading biotech and biopharma solutions, such as their flagship HPConnexx™ Single-Use Assemblies, FlowMaxx Pro Quaternary Diaphragm Pumps, and Stainless Steel Harvest Cart.
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Each year, #TeamHPNE sets the intention to continue to improve and expand upon their product portfolio, as well as maintain and exceed the world-class customer service they are known for. To learn more, reach out to info@hp-ne.com to talk to one of their talented bioprocess experts.
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About HPNE
As the industry needs grow, High Purity New England, Inc. continues to supply the biopharmaceutical industry with a range of innovative products, from drug discovery and development to fill-finish, including their flagship product, custom single-use assemblies, as well as pumps, sensors, bioreactor systems, storage and handling solutions and other single-use solutions. Along with their own manufactured products for the global market, they are also a distributor for more than 18 brands in North America.
