Great Books for Keeping Common New Year's Resolutions

The most common New Year's Resolutions are made repeatedly, year after year. Declarations to lose weight, quit smoking, or pay off debt are proclaimed with the best intentions and often abandoned within a few weeks. Many people throw in the towel, decide that New Year's Resolutions never work, and give up on making resolutions altogether.

But with a practical approach and enough information, common New Year's resolutions can be kept and new goals achieved. This year, try seeking help in a book. The right book can provide instruction, information, and inspiration to get your New Year's resolution back on track.

Have you made one of these most common New Year's resolutions? Try these books to help you succeed this year in your goals.

Lose Weight

The sheer number of books on dieting and weight loss is enough to overwhelm anyone, especially dieters who have made the same New Year's resolution to lose weight several years in a row without success. Tried everything? A straightforward approach to diet like You on a Diet by Michael F. Roizen and Mehmet C. Oz (yep, Oprah's Dr. Oz) explains the biological complexities of diet and exercise in simple terms. A revised edition was released in 2009.

For a more spiritual approach to eating, dieting, and weight loss, try Geneen Roth's Women, Food, and God, a beautifully written guide to mindful eating.

Stop Smoking

Newly revised for 2010 is the immensely popular guide to quitting smoking, The Easy Way to Stop Smoking by Allen Carr. Once a smoker with a 100-cigarette-a-day habit, Carr shares his "Easyway" method praised and acclaimed by millions of former smokers. The book delves deeply into explorations on why people smoke and the main reasons why they fail to quit.

Get Out of Debt/Save Money

Those seeking advice on personal finance are likely either intimidated by complex financial books or in need of help beyond those basics included in finance books for younger people. In The Road to Wealth, Suze Orman explains the financial needs and challenges most people will encounter throughout their lives. The book makes an excellent reference to have on your shelf at all times.

For families struggling with the recession, Steve and Annette Economides (husband-wife team of self-proclaimed "America's Cheapest Family") offer the precise and detailed strategies they used for over twenty years in raising their large family on a single income in America's Cheapest Family Gets You Right on the Money: Your Guide to Living Better, Spending Less, and Cashing in on Your Dreams.

When making New Year's resolutions, it always helps to get support. Family and friends can offer their encouragment. Professional guidance is sometimes needed. But when friendly encouragement isn't enough and professional help is too expensive, try a book for affordable, always-available advice to keep your resolution this year.