If you can never stick to your New Year’s resolutions, you’re not alone.
Up to 80% of us are estimated to have “failed” our new-year-new-me missions by February, according to Time, while only 8% of us stick with them for the whole year.
In case you were wondering, I’m very much in the majority here. So my ears pricked up when I saw a TikTok from Erin Jones, who said: “I’m turning my New Year’s resolutions into a bingo card. And now that it’s a game, I’m going to win.”
The trend has taken off, with commenters writing “you’ve cracked the code” under the creator’s video.
HuffPost UK spoke to behavioural psychologist Jessen James about whether the approach would really work ― and how to get a resolution full house in 2025.
@erinljones95 ???? Happy new year. I’m turning goals in to a game because that’s how my brain works. #newyear#2023#visionboard#manifestation#goalsetting
♬ original sound - Erin Jay579
Jessen told HuffPost UK that the method is “a really clever tool for motivation,” as “when things feel fun and manageable, we as human beings are more likely to stick with them”.
“It also taps into the satisfaction of ticking off a box, which gives you a sense of progress and accomplishment,” he continued.
A 2022 study found that people who were given little rewards for exercising in a “game-ified” system were much more likely to stay active than those who didn’t.
According to Jessen, that “little reward” can be as simple as checking off a list.
“Human beings love ‘completion’ as it feels good and feels like progress,” he explained.
“Our unconscious mind seeks for more of what it deems as good for us so we will aim to ‘tick off’ the next goal.”
Lastly, the “bingo card” method helps you reframe your achievement as a series of successes, rather than a binary fail/win system.
“Keeping the focus on the process, not just the end result, is why bingo cards can work for many individuals,” the behavioural psychologist said.
Erin, the creator behind the TikTok trend, simply typed her resolutions onto a grid (you can find multiple blank “bingo” formats online).
Others, like this TikTok user, simply tore out a sheet of paper and created a handwritten grid ― some research shows that handwriting is better for our brains than typing.
To keep her bingo card challenging, Erin added three or four “delusional” goals that she’s not sure she’ll be able to manage.
I’m not sure I’m going to push myself that far, but I’m definitely adding a bingo marker to my basket for 2025.
