We’ve all done it: made an ambitious, well thought out New Year’s resolution, and by February we’ve forgotten what it even was. Let’s put that trend out of style by keeping our resolutions this year! Here are some tips to help you out:

Make sure your resolution is truly something you want to change, not just something you think you should do. If you’re not very motivated from the start, there’s no way you’ll stick with it.

Be realistic. If your resolution is too ambitious and you notice that you’re failing two weeks into the New Year, you’re likely to get discouraged and give up altogether.

Don’t be vague when making your resolution. “I’m going to lose weight” is broad and hard to focus on. “I’m going to drink water instead of soda” works much better.

Remove any temptations, if possible. Stop buying soda, then you can’t drink it! If you have to go out of your way in order to resume your bad habits, you give yourself plenty of time to turn around and run from them!

Depending on your goal, plan to take baby steps. You’re not going to change overnight, so don’t force it. It should be said, though, that some resolutions and some personalities will be more successful cold-turkey.

Ask your friends and family for help. If your resolution is something that you can do with a friend, such as running, partner up! Not only will it be more fun, but there will be someone to hold you accountable if you start to slack.

Create a rewards (and consequences) system. It’s easy to blow off your resolutions if there are no consequences. Similarly, rewarding yourself for your efforts gives you extra motivation to push yourself.

Put a note for yourself on your bathroom mirror as a reminder. It will start your day off focused on your goal.

Replace a bad habit with a good one. This works especially well for resolutions concerning time-consuming activities. If you’re as busy as the rest of us are, cramming a workout session into your schedule sounds almost impossible. Trade up that half hour watching TV for your workout. If you don’t make room in your life for a good habit, it’s hard to stick with it.

Try putting these tips into practice, and then tell us about your success on our wall! We love to hear when our guides help you out. Good luck!