How to crush your old habits in the New Year with the help of science

Make 2019 the year you actually do all the things you want to do. Susan Shain on the most useful tips one can take to heart

It’s the shiniest time of year: that hopeful period when we imagine how remarkable — how fit and kind, how fiscally responsible — our future selves could be. And while you may think “new year, new you” is nothing more than a cringey, magazine-cover trope, research supports its legitimacy.

“It’s not like there’s something magical about Dec 31,” explained Charles Duhigg, the author of The Power of Habit. “What is magical is our mind’s capacity to create new narratives for ourselves, and to look for events as an opportunity to change the narrative.”

One such opportunity? January. Since most of