真正能坚持下去的10大新年目标

 　　The odds¹ are against us: Roughly 88 percent of New Year's resolutions don't make it through the year. These are big to-dos we’re slacking² on: eat healthier, get a better job, lose weight, save money. How can we fall short on such important goals year after year? The problem may lie in the kinds of resolutions we make – not our willpower.

　　形势不太有利：大约有88%人们的新年计划基本坚持不下去。这些要做的大事我们通通都懈怠了：吃得更健康，换一份更好的工作，减肥，存钱。年复一年我们怎么总会功亏一篑？问题可能在于我们所定下的新年目标，而不是我们的意志力。

　　Drink One Glass of Water in the Morning

　　在早晨喝一杯水

　　Drink a glass of water when you wake up. Water hydrates your body to start the day off. It’s preparing your body to accept nutrition. People talk about wanting to lose weight, but what if instead of that, that goal was, "I’m going to drink a full glass of water every morning." Instead of focusing on the end goal, focus on the small changes you can make every day to get there. When you have something you can accomplish every day, you’re more likely to form habits which, over time, will help you achieve your weight loss goals.

　　当你醒来时，喝一杯水。身体得到水分补给后，开始迎接新的一天，并准备对营养的吸收。人们总说想减肥，但如果不是那样的目标呢？如果目标是：“我打算每天早上喝满满一杯水” ，又会怎么样呢？与其关注最终结果，不如关注每一天你能做到的细微改变。当你每天都能完成一点，你更有可能养成一种习惯，这种习惯假以时日就会帮你达成减肥目标。

　　Turn One Driving Trip into a Walking Trip

　　把驾车出行换成徒步旅行

　　Before promising³ yourself that you will get up early and exercise every day, ask yourself if you’re really the kind of person who loves getting up at the crack of dawn to go on a long run. If you are, good for you; if not, consider taking small steps in the right direction as a start. Maybe you’re the kind of person who can walk to go get coffee. That can be a doable, achievable thing. From there you start to think, "I think I’m going to walk to yoga class, or walk to the grocery store."

　　在向自己承诺每天早起锻炼身体时，先问问自己：我真的喜欢拂晓时分就起床去晨跑吗？我是这种人吗？如果你是，恭喜你；如果不是，那么在开始时，请考虑在正确的方向上做些小小的努力。也许你是步行去拿咖啡的那种人，这事是可做而且可行的。然后你开始有这样的想法：“我认为我可以步行去参加瑜伽课，或者步行去杂货店。”

　　Read One Page Before Bed Every Night

　　每晚睡前读一页书

　　If you read one page every night before going to bed, you would be done with a 365-page book by the end of the year. That may not sound impressive, but it's one book more than you got through last year. If you’re feeling inspired, gradually increase your page count.

　　如果你每夜睡前读一页书，那么到了年底，你就读了一本365页的书。这个听起来也许没那么动心，但一年时间过去，你得到的远不止一本书。如果你觉得自己受到了启发，有进步，你可以逐渐增加你的阅读页数。

　　Make One Networking Effort a Day

　　每天为人际关系网做点努力

　　“Make a new professional contact on LinkedIn, or any other social-networking site that has to do with your industry,” says Lisa Johnson Mandell, author of “Career Comeback – Repackage Yourself to Get the Job You Want.” In addition to networking, educate yourself. Keep your finger on the pulse of the industry you’re after. Read at least one online article about a cutting-edge development in your field, or at the company you'd like to work for.

　　《复出职场--为获得心仪的工作，重新包装你自己》的作者丽莎·约翰逊·曼德尔说，“你可以在LinkedIn或其他社交网站建立一种与职业相关的新联系。” 除了人际关系网，还要接受自我教育，把握所在行业的发展脉搏。她还说，“至少在网上阅读一篇关于尖端领域的文章，不论是关于你自己所在的行业还是你想为之工作的公司。”

　　Indulge⁴ Every Other Day

　　改天再享用

　　Enjoy your favorite foods and drinks – in moderation. “Limit, do not eliminate,” says nutrition expert Rania Batayneh. “Diets do not work. Eliminating your favorite foods will just make you want or crave⁵ them more.” Instead of cutting out your favorite indulgences entirely⁶, Batayneh suggests finding ways to limit your intake⁷. If you eat potato chips every afternoon, challenge yourself to cut back to every other afternoon, focusing on reframing them as an infrequent treat.

　　好好享用你最爱的食物和饮料，但请适量。营养专家拉尼娅·巴特内说，“不是不吃，而是要限量。节食食谱没有效果，不吃只会让你更想和更渴求”。巴特内建议，与其不吃，还不如寻找办法来限制摄入量。如果你每天下午吃薯片，挑战自己：隔天下午再吃，调整认知，把它们作为偶尔的零食。

　　Buy Lunch Every Other Day

　　每隔一天买一次午餐

　　We can make the most impact on our spending habits by monitoring our casual spending habits, according to Harlan Platt, professor of finance⁸ at Northeastern University. “These include coffee at Starbucks, restaurant lunches and driving your car.” Instead of drinking lattes every day, drink them on Monday, Wednesday and Friday only. Think of them as luxuries, and aim to treat them as such.

　　东北大学的金融学教授哈兰·普拉特表示，通过观察我们的休闲消费习惯，我们可以对自己的消费习惯做出改变。他说：“这些消费包括到星巴克喝咖啡、下馆子吃饭、和自己开车。” 不要每天喝拿铁，只周一、周三和周五喝咖啡就可以。把它们想成奢侈品，并这样对待它们。

　　Say 'I Love You'

　　说“我爱你”

　　Say ‘I love you’ more, more times than you imagine you could, or should.Think of how you feel when you're on the receiving end, even via a text or Facebook message – it feels good, doesn’t it? Even if it’s a quick three words, it feels good to know that someone, somewhere thinks you’re great. Now, pay it forward. Make sure you appreciate the people in your life. Thank them for who they are and what they do, on a regular basis.

　　多说“我爱你”，比你认为你可以或应该说的次数还要多。即使是通过文字或Facebook来传达，当你作为听到这句话的一方，想想你的感受，那感觉很好不是吗？即使是简单的三个字，知道有人在某地认为你很棒，那感觉就很好。现在去回应那些人。感谢你生活中的那些人，经常感谢他们，感谢他们的真性情，感谢他们为你做的事。

　　Breathe Deeply for 10 Seconds

　　深呼吸10秒

　　Be intentional⁹ about your breathing. Some people can let life’s stresses roll right off their back, but for the rest of us, hearing “just don’t worry about it” is less than helpful. Instead of channeling your energy into "not worrying," try focusing on something positive, proactive and mindless, like breathing. Close your eyes for 10 seconds and focus on taking deep breaths. In addition to helping¹⁰ you slow down (deep breathing tells your brain to relax), you’re giving yourself a chance to push the reset¹¹ button.

　　关注你的呼吸。有些人不会让生活压着喘不过气来，但对我们其他人，听到一句“不用担心” 并没起到什么帮助。试着专注积极主动和不操心的事，比如呼吸，而不是把你的精力转去关注“不担心”。闭上眼睛10秒钟，专注深呼吸。深呼吸，除了帮助你淡定下来（深呼吸让你的大脑放松），还给了你自己一个按下“重启”按钮的机会。

　　Hide Your Paper Towels

　　把纸巾藏起来

　　Trade your paper towels for cloth towels. Again, start small at first. Simply make your paper towels less convenient to use – place them in the cupboard under the sink and hang a hand towel in an accessible place. This quick switch will help you reduce your paper towel usage¹² and encourage you to find reusable alternatives. Do you really need a fresh paper towel just to dry your hands? Save that disposable for kitchen accidents or pet surprises.

　　把纸巾换成毛巾。同样的，刚开始时从小处着手。只要增加使用纸巾的难度就好，比如把纸巾放置在水槽下的橱柜里，把毛巾挂在方便取用的地方——这种简易的对换，可以帮你降低纸巾的使用量，鼓励你寻找可重复使用的替代品。你真的需要一张新纸巾来擦手吗？把一次性纸巾存下来用到应对厨房和宠物带来的意外上。

　　List One Thing You're Thankful for Every Day

　　记录一件当天你要感谢的事

　　At the end of the day, list one thing you’re thankful for. It can be something small like a good parking spot or perfectly¹³ steeped cup of tea, or it can be broad like the health of your family. Whatever that one thing is (and there is no need to stop at just one), take a few minutes out of your day to acknowledge¹⁴ how grateful you are for that one little thing.

　　在一天结束的时候，记录一件当天你要感谢的事。这件事可以很小，比如说有一个好的停车位，或是泡了一杯好茶；这件事也可以很重要，如家人的健康。无论这件事是什么（也没必要说纠结是哪一件），花个几分钟来为这件微不足道的事情表达你的谢意。

1 odds   

n.让步，机率，可能性，比率；胜败优劣之别

参考例句：

• The odds are 5 to 1 that she will win.她获胜的机会是五比一。
• Do you know the odds of winning the lottery once?你知道赢得一次彩票的几率多大吗？

2 slacking   

偷懒( slack的现在分词 )； 减速； 放松

参考例句：

• The instructors were slacking on the job. 教员们对工作松松垮垮。
• He had never let a foreman see him slacking. 他从未在哪个工头面前表现出丝毫懈怠。

3 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。

4 indulge   

vt.沉溺（于），纵容，迁就，肆意从事

参考例句：

• I never indulge children with plenty of pocket money.我从不放任子女，给他们大量零用钱。
• Everyone should indulge in fantasy on occasion.每个人都应偶尔沉浸在想像之中。

5 crave   

vt.渴望得到，迫切需要，恳求，请求

参考例句：

• Many young children crave attention.许多小孩子渴望得到关心。
• You may be craving for some fresh air.你可能很想呼吸呼吸新鲜空气。

6 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

7 intake   

n.吸入，纳入；进气口，入口

参考例句：

• Reduce your salt intake.减少盐的摄入量。
• There was a horrified intake of breath from every child.所有的孩子都害怕地倒抽了一口凉气。

8 finance   

n.财务管理，财政，金融，财源，资金

参考例句：

• She is an expert in finance.她是一名财政专家。
• A finance house made a bid to buy up the entire company.一家信贷公司出价买下了整个公司。

9 intentional   

adj.故意的，有意（识）的

参考例句：

• Let me assure you that it was not intentional.我向你保证那不是故意的。
• His insult was intentional.他的侮辱是有意的。

10 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

11 reset   

v.重新安排，复位；n.重新放置；重放之物

参考例句：

• As soon as you arrive at your destination,step out of the aircraft and reset your wristwatch.你一到达目的地，就走出飞机并重新设置手表时间。
• He is recovering from an operation to reset his arm.他做了一个手臂复位手术，正在恢复。

12 usage   

n.惯用法，使用，用法

参考例句：

• I am clear about the usage of this word at last.这个词的用法我算是弄明白了。
• The usage is now firmly established.这种用法现已得到确认。

13 perfectly   

adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
• Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

14 acknowledge   

vt.承认...的权威，告知，收到，报偿

参考例句：

• With so much evidence against him he had to acknowledge his error.在这么多的证据面前，他不得不承认错误。
• It is ungracious of me not to acknowledge your help.你大力帮助而我尚未表示谢意，十分失礼。