>as one of those people who makes New Year's Resolutions every year, and gets mildly depressed when I fail to reach them...

This statement made me think of the book: One Small Step Can Change Your Life

https://www.amazon.com/Small-Step-Change-Your-Life/dp/076118...

...it is written by a psychiatrist about the practice of Kaizen, where you take absurdly small steps to reach your goals. So small that you can't fail. And these build on themselves. He covers your exact case. People who make New Year's resolutions that fail after a month or two. One example was a woman who needed to get exercise for health reasons. Previous exercise attempts have failed. So the doctor prescribes her to march in-place for 60 seconds every day, when she was normally watching TV. Anyway, it snowballs, as she realizes she can do more and more, and then starts to enjoy it. It is a short, inexpensive, easy read that I recommend.

Thankfully, someone already did. It's short and sweet.

http://www.amazon.com/Small-Step-Change-Your-Life/dp/0761129...

Sounds a lot like Kaizen. I liked this -- appropriately short -- book for more real-life examples and background: http://www.amazon.com/Small-Step-Change-Your-Life/dp/0761129...