Why 90% of resolutions faily by February (and the system that actually works) + My Goal Template

The Cold Truth About Resolutions

Every January, millions of people set resolutions.

And by February, 90% of them have already failed.

Sound familiar?

If you’ve ever found yourself losing momentum after the first few weeks—or abandoning your goals altogether—you’re not alone.

But the problem isn’t you.

The problem is the system you’re using to chase your goals.

Here’s the truth: Resolutions fail because they rely on hope, willpower, and a timeline that’s way too long to stay actionable.

If you’re serious about making progress this year, you need a completely different approach.

Why 12-Month Resolutions Fail

Traditional resolutions are like a marathon: they’re long, grueling, and often leave you wondering if you’re even making progress.

Here’s why they don’t work:

1. They Lack Urgency:

With 12 months to achieve your goal, it’s easy to procrastinate.

January feels too early to push hard.

“I’ll start next month” turns into “I’ll start after summer,” and before you know it, the year’s over.

2. No Feedback Loops:

A year is too long to wait for results.

Without frequent check-ins, it’s easy to drift off course and not realize it until it’s too late.

3. They Focus on Outcomes, Not Systems:

Most resolutions aim for a result—lose 20 pounds, save $10,000, grow a side hustle—without breaking down the actions required to get there.

This is why most people fail by February. They set vague, distant goals and hope that motivation alone will carry them through.

A System That Actually Works

To break this cycle, you need a system that creates urgency, provides frequent feedback, and focuses on actionable steps.

That system? The 12-Week Year.

This was inspired by the book “The 12-Week Year” by Brian P. Moran.

The 12-week framework transforms your year into four focused sprints. Instead of planning for 12 months, you plan for 12 weeks.

And I’m only sharing this with you after trying this system out for myself over Q4.

Suffice to say, this system works so well I’m now writing a full-on email to share this with you.

Here’s why it works so well:

1. Parkinson’s Law: The Secret to Getting More Done

This system leverages one of the most powerful productivity principles: Parkinson’s Law.

“Work expands to fill the time available for its completion.”

If you give yourself 12 months to achieve something, you’ll take 12 months—or longer.

But when you compress your timeline to just 12 weeks, you’re forced to focus, eliminate distractions, and act with urgency.

2. Weekly Feedback Loops Keep You on Track:

At the end of each week, this system makes it easy to assess your progress:

What worked? What didn’t? How can you adjust?

This constant reflection ensures you stay aligned with your goal.

This beats the traditional framework of “quarterly reviews” where you’ll realise in October that you no longer have enough time to reasonably achieve the goals you set at the start of the year.

3. Focus on Actions, Not Outcomes:

Instead of aiming for vague goals like “make $10k in trading,” you focus on the tasks that lead to results: reviewing trades, refining strategies, executing setups.

In life you cannot determine what outputs you get, you can only control your inputs.

This may make it seem like we lack a lot of control in determining what results we get…

But right inputs often lead to right outputs.

Example goal: Lose 5kg of weight

Working out 30 mins 3x/week, sleeping at least 8 hours every day, eating less sugar and more meat → will most likely lead to you achieving that output.

We don’t rise to the level of our goals, we fall to the level of our systems.

Focus on the right processes and the result will often follow as a by-product.

1. Seasons

There’s no such thing as work-life balance.

But I do believe Seasons are a much more sustainable way for us to get more done without burning out.

Just like how the people of old would shape their lives around the changing of seasons:

Spring = Planting/Starting new projects

Summer = Hard work tending the seeds

Fall = Harvesting and celebrating the harvest

Winter = Time for reflection/Spending time with loved ones

This is of course, a simplification. But the point remains.

Instead of trying to find balance all 365 days of the year, why not live in seasons?

3-6 months of maxing out on work and going 0% on “fun”

3 months of taking it easy knowing you’re “done with your year”.

3 months of going 50% on maintenance/work and 50% on pursuing new hobbies or your health.

Compared to being kind of in everything and not accomplishing much in any aspect because you’re not dedicating enough focus to anything.

How to Use the 12-Week System

1. Define Your 12-Week Goal:

Start with one or two specific, measurable outcomes. (keyword specific and measurable)

Example:

• Make $10k Trading

• Lose 5kg

• Gain 5k followers on X

2. Break It Down into Weekly Milestones:

Each week should have an overarching goal that gets you closer to goal completion. For instance:

• Week 1: Journal past trades to identify patterns.

• Week 2: Backtest strategies and condense down into 1 setup in a written trading plan.

• Week 3: Execute trades following trading plan with focus on being disciplined.

…

3. Daily Non-Negotiables:

Identify the actions you must take every day to stay on track.

• Spend 20 minutes backtesting your trading plan (make $10k trading)

• Post at least once on X (gain 5k followers on X)

• Sleep 8 hours (lose 5kg)

4. Reflect and Adjust Weekly:

Spend 15 minutes at the end of each week reviewing:

• Are you on track to hit your goals?

• What challenges did you face? How can you remove those bottlenecks?

• What needs to change for next week?

Your Challenge

Instead of setting resolutions for the year, try to just be focused on a 12-week plan.

Here’s how to start:

1. Write down one goal you want to achieve in the next 12 weeks.

2. Break it into weekly tasks and daily actions.

3. Commit to weekly reviews to track your progress.

By February, you won’t just be “on track.” You’ll be ahead of 90% of people who gave up on their resolutions.

Here’s a notion template to get you started: https://lace-snowplow-d57.notion.site/Guide-Instructions-179b263501aa80de83bbe02a7d290995?pvs=4

Nick

P.S. I believe it’s best to tackle the start of the year as strongly as possible.

Join here before capacity is hit again.