THE age-old story: Girl makes resolution. Girl crushes resolution for the first two weeks of January. Girl burns out on resolution.

There’s a reason the cliche is cliche. “Most people have unrealistic expectations that keeping resolutions should be easy,” says Pauline Wallin, Ph.D., psychologist and author of “Taming Your Inner Brat: A Guide for Transforming Self-Defeating Behavior.” “When it gets difficult, they give up.”

Setting yourself up for success is totally possible, though. Here is some expert advice.

1. Make your resolution

super-specific.

What sets goals that are totally unachievable apart from those that you can crush? Wallin says the former are all specific, measurable and attainable. So instead of making the vague resolution to “get in shape,” frame it as something more like “go to the gym three times a week.” It’s something you can clearly understand and measure — and it’s attainable because you’re not setting an unrealistic expectation that you need to work out every single day.

2. Tell other people about your resolution.

The more you put your plan out there, the more friends and family you’ll have to help keep you accountable, says Joseph Ferrari, Ph.D., a psychology professor at DePaul University. Posting about your resolutions and progress on social media is also a good idea. You’ll get encouragement when you post about making decisions that will help you get closer to your goal — and even if no one actually calls you out on backsliding, you’ll feel less tempted to in the first place because you know there are people out there keeping tabs on your progress.

3. Find yourself supporters.

Everyone has that friend who is there for you the second you say you want to hit a workout class together ... and that friend who knows you’re trying to stick to a budget but is still pressuring you to book a luxe getaway with her.

To set yourself up for max resolution success, surround with people who you know will support your efforts — and maybe even have similar goals themselves, suggests Ferrari.

4. If you can’t find real-life

resolution buddies,

connect with some digitally.

Find supporters who have similar goals online. “On support networks such as Reddit or specific goal-oriented communities such as MyFitnessPal, other people’s stories of their progress and struggles can help you stay on track,” Wallin says.

5. Translate your big goal into a series of smaller ones.

Breaking your big, scary resolution into baby steps will help you build momentum toward your ultimate goal, says Ferrari. So, if you’ve never run a marathon, sign up for a 5-K that’s a month or two out, and follow a training plan designed to help you build up to that. If you’re a chain-smoker who goes through two packs a day, try cutting out one of your regular smoke breaks from your routine.

6. Reward yourself for those little wins.

Once you’ve set up smaller and more attainable goals that will help you get to the grand goal, make specific plans to celebrate each time you accomplish one. This will help keep you motivated to power on, says Ferrari.

The reward can be anything — a self-care indulgence like a face mask, or a night of binge watching your favorite Netflix reruns.

7. Be patient.

“Remember that meaningful change takes time,” says John C. Norcross, Ph.D., psychology professor at the University of Scranton. He notes that it can take up to three months of forcing yourself to go through the motions before a behavior becomes a true habit. Adapting to a new lifestyle takes a while, and that means struggling through the tough parts before things get easier.

8. Track your progress.

You can do this in a few different ways: by taking photos of yourself every week, keeping a checklist of all you’ve accomplished or charting how far you’ve come on your mirror in lipstick. “This kind of ‘self-monitoring’ increases your chances of keeping the resolution,” says Norcross. That’s because you’ll be more likely to stay motivated if you can literally see how far you’ve come — and clearly visualize the work you still have left to do.

9. Set up an action plan that will help you avoid slip-ups.

The key is understanding that certain behaviors or circumstances tend to “trigger” most backsliding, says Norcross.

Start by thinking through the types of moments when you’ll feel like giving up, suggests Wallin. Then, make a game plan. For example, if you know cravings for sweets always hit you in the afternoon, but your goal is to cut back on sugar, you can say, “I’ll get up and go for a 15-minute walk then instead to wait it out.” Chances are that at the end of that delay period, your sweet tooth won’t be screaming at you quite so loudly.

(SD-Agencies)