(COVINGTON, La.) —  Ah, New Year Resolutions, a chance for people to resolve something in their lives, either a behavioral fix or something of a lifestyle change.

But how many people actually keep their resolutions? Or, more importantly, why do some keep them and others just drop them like dust?

According to a study by Statistic Brain in 2017, 41% of Americans “usually” make new year resolutions, 17% of Americans infrequently make resolutions, and 42% of Americans “never” make new year resolutions. However, of the people who usually make new year resolutions, only 9.2% felt as if they have achieved it, 48.4% had infrequent success, and 42.4% failed.

However, I decided to take my own survey. I asked ten faculty members (selected at random) and 30 students (also, selected randomly) if they had ever made a new year’s resolutions and if they kept them.

Out of the ten faculty members, all of them have made New Year’s Resolutions before; however, only four of them have achieved it or kept it. The other six faculty members didn’t fully succeed, and ultimately failed.

Some of the reasons they failed went along the lines of not being fully dedicated to their resolution, or that it wasn’t a reasonable resolution. The faculty members who did succeed appeared to achieve them because they were dedicated, they were easier resolutions, and/or it involved other people.

Out of the 30 students, 26 students have made New Year’s resolutions before. Four students have not. However, out of the 26 students who made New Year’s resolutions only five of them kept their resolutions.

It’s safe to say that the majority make resolutions, but few keep them.

Many of the resolutions students made resemble those of the faculty members. Most of the students claimed that if the resolution was more reasonable, it was more easily achieved. Many of the students who didn’t keep their resolution also noted that they weren’t very dedicated to it from the beginning.

Research shows it’s all about the dedication and motive. If you have those two things, you can accomplish a New Year’s Resolution. And remember, it’s not too late to make one.