The Mel Robbins Podcast - Change Your Life This Year: How to Get From Where You Are to Where You Want to Be

In today’s episode, you’re going to learn exactly how to achieve your goals, stay motivated, and create real, lasting change in your life. If you’ve struggled to create change that sticks… If you know exactly what you want to change, but can’t follow through… If you’re tired of blaming willpower… This conversation will give you clarity, relief, and a proven way forward. Joining Mel today is Dr. Katy Milkman, PhD, one of the world’s leading behavioral scientists, an endowed professor at the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania, and co-founder of the Behavior Change for Good Initiative. In her lab at UPenn, Dr. Milkman consolidated the findings from 192 researchers and found that there are 7 hidden barriers that stop people from changing, even when they desperately want to. Today, she walks through each of the 7 barriers and explains why each barrier requires a different, evidence-backed strategy. Trying harder doesn’t work. Using the right tool does. Dr. Milkman will also share the secret weapon for creating real change in your life called the Fresh Start Effect. In this episode, you’ll learn: -The real reason change feels so hard – and why you’re not lazy, broken, or lacking discipline -The 7 hidden barriers that quietly stop you from following through -How to identify which barrier is blocking you -Why willpower keeps letting you down and what works when motivation disappears -Why procrastination, impulsivity, and forgetting are predictable and the simple tools that stop them -How to make hard habits feel easier and more rewarding, so they finally stick -The science-backed way to design your environment for success instead of relying on self-control In this conversation, Dr. Milkman gives you a practical framework to stop fighting yourself and start working with how your brain actually functions. If you’re ready for this year to be different, this episode is for you. You’re not broken. You’re not behind. And once you understand the science, change finally becomes possible. For more resources related to today’s episode, click here for the podcast episode page. If you liked the episode, check out this one next: The 7‑Day Habit Reset: Start Today, Feel Different By Next Week As a gift to listeners of The Mel Robbins Podcast, Mel has created a free 20-page workbook to help you make 2026 a great year. This workbook is designed using the latest research to help you get clear about what you want and empower you to take the next step forward in your life. And the cool part? It takes less than a minute for you to get your hands on it. Just sign up at melrobbins.com/bestyear. Connect with Mel: Get on the waitlist for Pure Genius Get Mel’s newsletter, packed with tools, coaching, and inspiration. Get Mel’s #1 bestselling book, The Let Them Theory Watch the episodes on YouTube Follow Mel on Instagram The Mel Robbins Podcast Instagram Mel's TikTok Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ to listen to new episodes ad-free Disclaimer

Duration: 1h 28m
Broadcast on: 29 Dec 2025
Audio Format: other

In today’s episode, you’re going to learn exactly how to achieve your goals, stay motivated, and create real, lasting change in your life.

If you’ve struggled to create change that sticks…

If you know exactly what you want to change, but can’t follow through…
If you’re tired of blaming willpower…

This conversation will give you clarity, relief, and a proven way forward.

Joining Mel today is Dr. Katy Milkman, PhD, one of the world’s leading behavioral scientists, an endowed professor at the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania, and co-founder of the Behavior Change for Good Initiative.

In her lab at UPenn, Dr. Milkman consolidated the findings from 192 researchers and found that there are 7 hidden barriers that stop people from changing, even when they desperately want to.

Today, she walks through each of the 7 barriers and explains why each barrier requires a different, evidence-backed strategy. Trying harder doesn’t work. Using the right tool does.

Dr. Milkman will also share the secret weapon for creating real change in your life called the Fresh Start Effect.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

-The real reason change feels so hard – and why you’re not lazy, broken, or lacking discipline

-The 7 hidden barriers that quietly stop you from following through
-How to identify which barrier is blocking you

-Why willpower keeps letting you down and what works when motivation disappears -Why procrastination, impulsivity, and forgetting are predictable and the simple tools that stop them
-How to make hard habits feel easier and more rewarding, so they finally stick
-The science-backed way to design your environment for success instead of relying on self-control

In this conversation, Dr. Milkman gives you a practical framework to stop fighting yourself and start working with how your brain actually functions.

If you’re ready for this year to be different, this episode is for you. You’re not broken. You’re not behind. And once you understand the science, change finally becomes possible.

For more resources related to today’s episode, click here for the podcast episode page.

If you liked the episode, check out this one next: The 7‑Day Habit Reset: Start Today, Feel Different By Next Week

As a gift to listeners of The Mel Robbins Podcast, Mel has created a free 20-page workbook to help you make 2026 a great year. This workbook is designed using the latest research to help you get clear about what you want and empower you to take the next step forward in your life. And the cool part? It takes less than a minute for you to get your hands on it. Just sign up at melrobbins.com/bestyear.

Connect with Mel:

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Hey, it's Renmel and welcome to the Mel Robbins Podcast. Have you ever wondered, why is it that you can know what you want? But for some reason, you can't seem to make it happen. Like maybe this is the year you want to lose weight or take control of your money or start a new chapter, stop smoking, start meditating, get a job, start journaling. You know what you want. But for some reason, you just can't get out of your own way. I've been there. You've been there. It's so frustrating. And the people in your life right now that are driving you crazy, they're in their own way too. That's why our conversation and the tools you're going to learn today are going to be so life changing. You're going to feel a weight lifted off your shoulders because in our studios today here in Boston, we have a world-renowned behavioral scientist. And she is also an endowed professor at the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania. She is here to reveal the seven hidden barriers that have been stopping you from getting what you want out of life. And this is not just her opinion that there are these barriers. They were uncovered in her lab, the Behavior Change for Good initiative at Wharton School of Business. They come from consolidating the findings from over 192 researchers. I cannot wait for you to discover what your specific barrier is. And even more importantly, you're going to learn the exact evidence-backed strategy to use for each one of these seven barriers. Because depending on which one is keeping you stuck, you're going to need a different tool. I don't know about you, but I am personally ready for this, and I'm sure you are too. Hey, it's your friend Mel, and I want to let you in on a little secret to my success. Every single year for the last 20 years, I go through this same year-end planning process. It's a simple way that I create the next best year of my life. There are six questions I ask myself. They're all backed by research, all proven to help you get clear about what you want, and step into next year with a sense of purpose and the plan to help you create it. I now want to share them with you. I have a free workbook that you can download that will guide you through my year-end planning process. You will be so clear. You will be confident, and you will know exactly how to create 2026 as the best year ever. And as your friend, I'm going to tell you, you deserve to have the best year of your life, especially after everything you've been through. Sign up at Mel Robbins dot com slash best year. Okay, picture this. You're halfway through a weekend project, and you don't have the one thing you need. We'll let Lowe's make the run for you. My Lowe's rewards and my Lowe's pro rewards members get free same day delivery, just place your order and Lowe's handles the rest. Members get more at Lowe's $25 minimum and loyalty membership required.

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