New Year's resolutions: If there’s a will, is there a way?

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In our live WebTV show we share the secrets to sticking to your New Year’s resolutions.

Show date: Today, Thursday 6th January 2011

Show time: 13:00

Professor Richard Wiseman joins us live online today to discuss New Year’s resolutions.

In the New Year many of us will be looking to make a new start. Whether it’s getting off the bus a stop early and walking to work or pledging to eat a healthy breakfast every day, millions of people around the UK will be aiming to make positive changes to improve their current lifestyle.

But with a long, cold January looming ahead of us, how long do you expect to keep your New Year’s resolutions for?

With this in mind, The Great Willpower Report conducted by Professor Richard Wiseman, studied nearly 2,000 people to find out how long they could keep to their resolutions using willpower alone. After vowing to make small changes to their lifestyle, including not drinking alcohol at home, reducing their children’s screen time and walking to the shops instead of driving, respondents were set the task of keeping to their resolution for as long as possible.

Perhaps unsurprisingly the report showed that more than half of respondents quit less than a week after revealing their best intentions. The results ultimately demonstrated that a reliance on willpower alone is not enough to help people stick to their commitments.

In our live WebTV show we will be joined by Psychologist Professor Richard Wiseman, from the University of Hertfordshire. He will be offering his advice on how to succeed with your New Year’s resolutions and shedding light on why willpower alone is often not enough to change your life for the better.