Every December, the same ritual plays out. You sit down with good intentions. You make a list. Lose weight. Read more. Save money. Exercise. Learn something new. Drink less. Meditate. Wake up earlier.
By mid-February, the list is buried under a pile of receipts and forgotten grocery lists.
You already know why resolutions fail—too many goals, too vague, too dependent on willpower that depletes by lunchtime. But knowing why something doesn't work and having a better alternative are two different things.
So what actually works?
Over the past decade, researchers in behavioral psychology, habit formation, and goal achievement have identified several approaches that dramatically outperform the traditional resolution list. Some of them are simple tweaks. Others require a complete rethinking of how you approach personal change.
Here are the best alternatives to New Year's resolutions—and how to choose the right one for you.
1. The One-Word Year
Instead of a list of specific goals, choose a single word that captures the essence of who you want to become or how you want to live.
Examples: Growth. Adventure. Discipline. Presence. Create. Connect. Simplify. Bold.
The word becomes a filter for decisions throughout the year. When opportunities arise, you ask: "Does this align with my word?" When you're stuck, you return to it for guidance.
Why it works: A single word is impossible to forget. It doesn't require tracking or habit-building. It simply becomes a lens through which you see the year.
Best for: People who feel overwhelmed by specific goals but want a unifying theme for the year. Particularly effective for those in transition periods who need flexibility rather than rigid targets.
The limitation: A word can be too abstract. "Adventure" sounds inspiring, but without concrete action, it remains a nice idea. You might end December wondering what "adventure" actually meant in practice.
2. The Anti-Resolution: Subtract Instead of Add
Most resolutions are about adding: add gym sessions, add meditation, add reading time, add healthy meals. But your life is already full. Adding more creates overwhelm.
The anti-resolution flips this: what will you remove this year?
Examples:
- Remove social media from your phone
- Remove alcohol for the year
- Remove one recurring commitment that drains you
- Remove the snooze button habit
- Remove complaining for 30 days (then extend)
Why it works: Subtraction creates space. You don't need to find time for your goals—you create time by eliminating what doesn't serve you. And removal is often easier than addition because it's a one-time decision rather than a daily battle.
Best for: People who feel overcommitted and exhausted. Those who suspect they're filling their lives with low-value activities that crowd out what matters.
The limitation: Subtraction alone doesn't guarantee you'll fill the space with something meaningful. You might remove social media but replace it with Netflix. The void needs intention.
3. The 12-Week Year
Traditional goal-setting operates on an annual cycle, which creates a psychological trap: there's always time later. January becomes "I'll start in February." March becomes "I'll really focus in Q2."
The 12-Week Year, popularized by Brian Moran, compresses your goals into 12-week sprints. A year becomes four separate "years," each with its own goals and deadlines.
Why it works: Urgency drives action. When you only have 12 weeks, procrastination becomes costly. The compressed timeline also makes planning easier—you're not trying to predict what you'll want in November.
Best for: People who thrive under deadlines. Those who've noticed they accomplish more in the last week before a deadline than in the previous three months.
The limitation: Some goals genuinely require sustained effort over many months. You can't train for an ultramarathon in 12 weeks. You can't write a novel in 12 weeks (well, most people can't). For transformative goals, the sprint model falls short.
4. Systems Over Goals
James Clear's Atomic Habits popularized this idea: instead of focusing on goals, focus on systems. Instead of "lose 20 pounds," focus on becoming "a person who doesn't miss workouts." Instead of "write a book," focus on "writing 500 words every morning."
The logic is compelling: goals are about results you want, but systems are about the processes that lead to those results. Fix your systems, and the results follow naturally.
Why it works: Systems reduce decision fatigue. You don't wake up asking "should I work out today?"—you just follow your system. And systems compound: small daily improvements accumulate into massive change.
Best for: People building new habits from scratch. Those who want sustainable lifestyle change rather than one-time achievements.
The limitation: Systems excel at incremental improvement but can struggle with transformative goals. Sometimes you don't need a slightly better version of your current life—you need a fundamentally different year. Systems optimize; they don't always transform. (More on this in our article on why Atomic Habits isn't always enough.)
5. The Quarterly Theme
Instead of setting goals for the entire year, assign a theme to each quarter:
- Q1: Health (focus all improvement energy on physical wellbeing)
- Q2: Career (double down on professional growth)
- Q3: Relationships (prioritize connection and community)
- Q4: Finance (end the year with money in order)
Within each quarter, you can set specific goals, but the theme keeps your focus narrow enough to make progress without the fragmentation of a dozen simultaneous resolutions.
Why it works: It respects the reality that attention is finite. You can't meaningfully improve everything at once, but you can go deep on one area for three months.
Best for: Well-rounded improvers who want progress across multiple life areas but recognize they can't do everything simultaneously.
The limitation: Life doesn't respect quarters. What if a career opportunity arises during your "health" quarter? The structure can feel rigid, and important things might get delayed until their designated quarter.
6. The Bucket List Sprint
Forget habit-based improvement entirely. Instead, identify specific experiences you want to have this year:
- Visit Iceland
- See your favorite band live
- Take a cooking class in Italy
- Learn to surf
- Attend a silent retreat
- Go skydiving
Then schedule them. Put dates on the calendar. Book the flights. Pay the deposits.
Why it works: Experiences are memorable in ways that habits aren't. You'll remember the trip to Iceland decades from now. You probably won't remember that you meditated 247 days in a row.
Best for: People who feel like years are blurring together. Those who value adventure and novelty over optimization and productivity.
The limitation: Experiences are great, but they don't necessarily create lasting change. You can have an incredible year of adventures and still end up exactly where you started in terms of health, skills, or personal growth.
7. The Misogi: One Year-Defining Challenge
This is the approach we believe in most deeply—and it's why we built this app.
A Misogi is one bold, year-defining challenge that transforms both your year and yourself. Not a habit. Not a resolution. Not a vague intention. A specific challenge that, when completed, will make you say: "That was the year I ___."
- "That was the year I ran my first marathon."
- "That was the year I wrote a novel."
- "That was the year I climbed Kilimanjaro."
- "That was the year I launched my business."
The term comes from a traditional Japanese Shinto purification ritual, but Jesse Itzler popularized the modern interpretation: pick one thing per year that stretches you, scares you a little, and makes the year unforgettable.
Why it works:
The Misogi addresses the core failure modes of resolutions:
- Fragmentation: Instead of scattering energy across a dozen goals, you pour everything into one meaningful pursuit.
- Vagueness: A Misogi is specific and measurable. You know exactly what success looks like.
- Forgettability: Unlike "exercise more," completing a marathon is something you'll remember for the rest of your life.
- Identity: When you commit to one thing, your identity shifts. You become "the person training for X." Every decision filters through that lens.
Best for: People who want their year to mean something. Those who've tried scattered resolutions and found them unsatisfying. Anyone ready to do something bold.
The limitation: You have to choose. If you want a Misogi year, you're implicitly saying no to the ten other things you might have spread yourself across. For some people, that focus feels limiting. For others, it's liberation.
Not sure what your Misogi should be? We've compiled 50 Misogi ideas across every category, and our guide on how to choose your Misogi walks you through the selection process.
How to Choose Your Alternative
With all these options, how do you pick the right one?
Ask yourself these questions:
What's your failure pattern?
- If you set too many goals and accomplish none: try the Misogi or One-Word Year
- If you start strong but quit by March: try the 12-Week Year to create urgency
- If you feel overcommitted and exhausted: try the Anti-Resolution (subtraction)
- If your years blur together without memorable moments: try the Bucket List Sprint
- If you want sustainable habits: try Systems Over Goals
- If you want progress but can't choose one focus: try Quarterly Themes
What do you actually want?
Be honest here. Do you want:
- Transformation (a fundamentally different year)? → Misogi
- Optimization (a slightly better version of current life)? → Systems
- Experiences (memorable moments)? → Bucket List
- Balance (progress across multiple areas)? → Quarterly Themes
- Space (less overwhelm)? → Anti-Resolution
What's your personality?
- Love deadlines and pressure? → 12-Week Year
- Need flexibility and hate rigid tracking? → One-Word Year
- Want something to train for? → Misogi
- Prefer process over outcomes? → Systems
The Case for Going Bold
Here's what we've noticed after years of trying different approaches:
The alternatives that focus on optimization—systems, habits, incremental improvement—are great for making life slightly better. They're sustainable. They're sensible. They're what most productivity experts recommend.
But they don't make years memorable.
When you look back on 2024, you don't remember the 247 days you meditated or the 182 workouts you logged. Those accomplishments are real, but they blur together.
What you remember are the peaks. The challenges. The moments when you did something hard.
That's why we keep coming back to the Misogi approach. Not because habits don't matter—they do. But because a year should be more than a collection of optimized routines. It should be defined by something meaningful.
The marathon. The novel. The mountain. The launch. The transformation.
Something that makes you say, with genuine pride: "That was the year I ___."
Combining Approaches
One final thought: these alternatives aren't mutually exclusive.
You could choose a Misogi as your primary focus and adopt a word of the year as a guiding theme. You could run 12-week sprints within a larger annual challenge. You could use systems to support your Misogi training while subtracting distractions that don't serve it.
The key is hierarchy. One thing is primary. Everything else supports it or gets cut.
Whatever you choose, make it intentional. The years are going to pass anyway. The question is whether they'll blur together or stand out as distinct chapters of a life well-lived.
Ready to Try the Misogi Approach?
If the idea of one year-defining challenge resonates with you, the Misogi app can help you define, track, and complete your goal.
- Choose your Misogi with a clear, measurable target
- Log daily progress with simple tracking
- Watch 365 days fill up with evidence of your consistency
- Stay accountable with a community focused on bold goals
It's free, it's focused, and it might just help you make this year the one you actually remember.
Key Takeaways
- Traditional resolutions fail because they're too numerous, too vague, and depend too heavily on willpower
- Seven alternatives to consider: One-Word Year, Anti-Resolution (subtraction), 12-Week Year, Systems Over Goals, Quarterly Themes, Bucket List Sprint, and the Misogi
- Choose based on your failure pattern, what you actually want, and your personality
- Optimization makes life better; bold challenges make years memorable
- The Misogi approach—one year-defining challenge—creates focus, identity shift, and lasting transformation
- Approaches can be combined, but hierarchy matters: one thing is primary