If you’ve failed at keeping your New Year’s resolutions in the past, research suggests that it may have to do with the goals you’ve chosen and how you implement change, reports the January issue of the Harvard Health Letter.

What doesn’t work? One common mistake is to have too many goals. Another formula for failure is to set your sights on behaviors that are too vague, such as being a better spouse. A third pitfall is setting goals that are too lofty, says the Harvard Health Letter.

What does work? Researchers say you’re more likely to achieve goals that match your own interests and values, rather than those that reflect outside pressures or expectations. In other words, you’re more likely to keep a resolution if the motivation is coming from you, not someone else.

Another frequent finding is that to achieve a goal, you must come up with a strategy for doing so that’s rooted in practical steps. Tie the desired behaviors to common events or to habits you already have, so the new behavior becomes more or less automatic. For example, you might improve your pill-taking habits by putting your medications next to your toothbrush.

And how does perfectionism impact goal achievement? Researchers report that subjects with perfectionist tendencies that are integral to their personalities fare well with step-by-step plans for pursuing a goal. But the practical steps backfired for perfectionism driven by a need to reach expectations set by others.

The bottom line: Pick your resolution carefully and back it up with concrete strategies about how to achieve it.