What specific behaviors would advisors like to see their clients change for 2026? And how can they help turn a January intention into a repeatable process for years to come?

Every January, Americans dust off the same three traditions: wishing family, friends, and colleagues a “Happy New Year;” putting away holiday decorations; and declaring they’re about to become a new person. A Forbes Health/OnePoll survey heading into 2024 stated, “Many respondents plan to commit to multiple goals, with 66.5% stating they plan on making three or more resolutions for the year ahead.”

While the numbers for those making resolutions can vary depending on what poll you look at entering 2026, the “greatest hits” look familiar: exercise more, eat healthier/lose weight, save more money, improve career and personal life, spend more time with friends and family, and generally feel happier or improve well-being.

For financial advisors, that mindset could be an opportunity. Many clients are already primed to act—the advisor’s role is to turn a January intention into a repeatable process throughout 2026 and beyond.

The catch is follow-through. While one study says 89% of people believe they are at least somewhat likely to follow through on their resolutions, prior research has said only about 25% of resolution-setters achieved at least some success.

That is pretty consistent with observations shared in a Gallup webcast, where speakers noted that by mid-February, roughly 80% of people who set New Year’s resolutions had abandoned them.

Psychologically, resolutions frequently fail for the same reason self-directed investors often see poor results compared to professionally managed accounts: goals are vague, too aggressive, or unsupported by a system designed to keep behavior on track.

The good news is that willpower is not the main lever—structure is. Evidence-backed tactics include (1) making goals smaller and more specific, (2) building implementation intentions (“If X happens, then I’ll do Y”) to pre-decide the when/where/how, and (3) using consistent self-monitoring—even simple tracking—to create feedback and accountability.

One practical takeaway financial advisors can immediately apply is to help clients convert vague resolutions, such as “save more,” into an automated, measurable routine, such as setting specific monthly contributions to a designated account. Research also shows that framing objectives as specifically goal-oriented (“build an emergency fund of six months’ expenses”) rather than purely avoidance-oriented (“stop spending so much”) tends to be more successful. Pair those approaches with automation, tracking, and accountability, and advisors may be able to convert a feel-good statement into a system. That’s the advisor challenge—and opportunity: designing the environment so the desired behavior becomes the default.

What resolutions would advisors most like their clients to make?

As I started thinking about writing this article late last year, I thought it would be interesting to ask advisors what resolutions they would most like their clients to make for 2026.

I intentionally asked several dozen advisors not to focus on big-picture issues in their financial- and investment-planning process, but instead on specific behaviors that often come up, are potentially fixable in the coming months, or might even fall into the “pet peeves” category.

Far and away, the leading responses centered on advisors wishing that some of their clients would finally become serious about addressing their legacy, estate, and long-term-care planning. While this represents a small minority of their clients, it is troubling to them—for good reason. Several advisors also mentioned the serious emotional barriers some clients face in confronting their own mortality or potential health issues as they age, which is understandable. You can read more on how advisors address legacy-planning issues in the article, “Generational wealth transfer—or a change in legacy thinking?”

Related to legacy planning, a couple of advisors spoke about their wish that clients would get their adult children more actively involved in financial planning—both by including them in family planning sessions and by addressing the individual needs of the children themselves. In the article “Offsite ‘boot camps’ promote financial literacy to clients’ children,” one advisor discusses his successful financial education program targeted to that group.

Another common theme is that, despite the advisor’s best efforts to manage investment expectations, some clients still don’t fully grasp the value of a balanced, disciplined, and risk-managed approach to their overall portfolio. Here’s how a few advisors expressed it:

This insightful article, written a few years ago by a financial advisor, addresses many of the issues surrounding client investment expectations: “Why it’s critical to teach clients the importance of ‘behavioral adherence.’”

The head of an investment management firm also discusses investor expectations in the article, “How to find true happiness in your investing.” He writes that true investor happiness comes from making steady progress toward goals that are realistic, meaningful, and manageable.

Other “resolution” topics mentioned by advisors included their hope for more qualified, unsolicited referrals (“Don’t keep our firm your best-kept secret”); better coordination between spouses or partners on paperwork and scheduling meetings (“We waste too much time going in circles”); encouraging clients to make more heartfelt and generous charitable donations (“They inevitably find it so fulfilling”); and addressing the ongoing issue of excessive debt for some clients (“I wish every single client, especially younger ones, would stop using buy now, pay later to ‘pay’ for things!”).

Perhaps my favorite sentiment for 2026 came from several advisors I interviewed last year, each of whom said it in slightly different ways:

Retirement planning, these advisors say, isn’t just about income—it’s also about helping clients design the lifestyle they want for the years ahead. They believe that they can play a significant role in helping their clients look beyond the important financial mechanics of funding retirement income needs to first envision, and then build, a path to their ideal retirement lifestyle—one that is both secure and fulfilling.

I think that is a resolution that advisors and clients alike can embrace.

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and the sources cited and do not necessarily represent the views of Proactive Advisor Magazine. This material is presented for educational purposes only.