"Every January, millions of people make New Year's resolutions. It's a joyous time full of high hopes.

Ask people what they wish to achieve or hope to accomplish in the following year, and the answer will usually be something such as any of these: "I want to: lose weight; improve my finances; get a new job; exercise more; revamp a relationship; manage stress; stop smoking; set aside more time for myself."

But according to U.S. News & World Report, the failure rate for New Year's resolutions is around 80%, and most people lose their resolve by mid-February.

Why? Because when it comes time to take action, we hem and haw, deliberate and dither.

We wait for the free time, the perfect day, the right season, a better mood, or optimal market conditions. Or we stall until we can resolve a medical crisis, smooth over a problem with the in-laws, or put some money in the bank."

Nabil Fanous is a cosmetic surgeon and author of The Universal Rules of Life: 27 Secrets for Managing Time, Stress, and People.

He shares his story and discusses his KevinMD article, "Stop the 'I will' habit."

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Secrets for managing time, stress, and people

The Podcast by KevinMD