Fresh start effect
The fresh start effect is the tendency for people to pursue goals more vigorously just after temporal landmarks: the start of a week, month or year, birthdays and holidays. Dai, Milkman and Riis documented it in 2014 using gym attendance, dieting searches and commitment-contract data. Landmarks work by opening a new mental accounting period that separates you from your past, imperfect self.
| Field | Behavioural science |
|---|---|
| Key researchers | Hengchen Dai, Katherine Milkman, Jason Riis |
| Related concepts | Temporal landmarks, mental accounting, commitment devices, goal setting |
The research
Dai, Milkman and Riis (2014, Management Science) found Google searches for diet, gym visits and commitments to goals all spiked at the start of weeks, months, years, and after birthdays and holidays. Their explanation: landmarks relegate failures to a previous chapter, letting people feel like a new self, and they prompt big-picture thinking over daily friction. Follow-up work found framing matters: labelling a date as a fresh start, like the first day of spring, increased commitment to starting then.
How to use it, and one caution
Schedule restarts, not just starts: after a broken streak, the next Monday or the first of the month is a legitimate relaunch pad rather than an excuse. You can also manufacture landmarks, a new notebook, a rearranged desk, the first day after a trip. The caution: waiting for a landmark can itself become procrastination, and the effect concerns starting, not sustaining, so pair a fresh start with a mechanism that survives week two, such as implementation intentions or a commitment device.
Related
Habit stackingImplementation intentions research
Frequently asked questions
Should I wait until Monday to start?
If it is Thursday and the wait buys you a genuinely stronger launch, planned and committed, using Monday is playing the effect deliberately. If waiting is just delay in a lab coat, start a two-minute version today and treat Monday as the full relaunch.