Top New Year's Resolutions ... and the Apps to Be Successful

According to the popular list-making website 43things.com, these are the Top 10 New Year's resolutions of 2011: lose weight; try something new; save money; be happy; achieve an athletic goal; fall in love; take a photo every day; get a job; read more; and quit smoking. Compare it to the list of most popular resolutions from USA.gov and you'll see a lot of similarities. That's because, year after year, resolutions are made in January and broken in February.

Folks who specialize in these kinds of things say it doesn't have to be this way. You can keep your New Year's Resolution and achieve your goals. Preparation is the key to success with New Year Resolutions. 1) Start with a realistic goal. 2) Make an actionable plan. 3) Have the necessary tools to achieve your new goal.

To help with your New Year's Resolutions, we've rounded up some apps designed to help you achieve your goals in the coming year. Assuming that your resolution is realistic, you're just a download away from success in 2011.  

1. Lose Weight.

If your goal this year is to lose weight, Calorie Tracker from Livestrong.com has one of the largest food databases in the App Store so you can accurately track what you eat and stick to your diet.

2. Eat, Drink, Learn, or Try Something New.

Trying something new doesn't have to be as drastic as a jungle safari. How about a new restaurant, a new dish or a day trip to a new town? Rachel Ray traveled all over discovering new places and sharing great deals on her show "$40 a Day." Use this app to follow along, try something new and find a new favorite.

3. Save Money.

You'll never learn to hold onto your hard-earned cash if you don't keep track of where it goes. Balance Forecasting puts you in control of your finances by making it easy to know what your money is doing. Keep track of what you're spending and forecast whether you're going to have left at the end of the month.

4. Be Happy.

Self-help gurus have long touted the benefits of keeping a gratitude journal. This app makes it easy. Start now and you'll soon see how learning to be grateful can become a path to happiness.

5. Set an Attainable Athletic Goal, like Running a 5K or 10K.

C25K is a popular 5K training program. Even complete couch potatoes can become regular runners by following this three-day-a-week program. In fact, it's designed especially to get you off the couch.

6. Fall in Love.

If you build it, they will come. I'm talking about your profile! Jump into the dating pool feet first this year. Then, use dateOften to expand the dating pool based on your "Social Interest Graph." Ready to plan the wedding? That's a different app.

7. Take a Photo Every Day for a Year.

Inspired by people like Noah, who took a self-portrait a day for six years, many people want to remember the year with photos. Use Daily Mugshot to snap a pic and you can share your animated photo evolution with friends, family or on your blog.

8. Get a Job

If you need a job to support your app habit, then start with Job search. This app provides access to millions of jobs from company websites and job boards.

9. Read More

Are you determined to read more this year? Try Kobo. This eReader makes it social to be a bookworm by making it easy to share current books or recently completed tomes on Facebook and other social sites.

10. Quit Smoking

This app takes participants through a five-day step-by-step program to change daily habits and achieve their goal to quit smoking. Using psychological motivations and physical changes, the Plan works to break the participant’s smoking routine and eliminate cigarette cravings.

Have you made a New Year's Resolution? Will you be using your iPhone or iPad to achieve your goal?