17 January 2024

Working securely in 2024: 5 psychological tips to make your resolutions a success

How are your efforts to handle data safely and securely going, now that we’re two weeks into the new year?

Staying true to your intended behaviour can be challenging. Every resolution starts with the resolve to actively protect your information. However, we often postpone or even forget our good intentions. Fortunately, there are several strategies that can help you in keeping up your new year’s resolutions and safe work practices.

Here are five psychological tips, from psychologists Za-Zie Kuipers and Sjoerd van Veldhuizen, that can help you make your intentions a reality.

Een illustratie die laat zien dat 1 op de 3 medewerkers nooit op een phishing link klikt.

Apply implementation intentions

Implementation intentions are a powerful goal-setting tool. The concept is to make your goal as specific as possible.

Instead of being vague, such as “I plan to handle sensitive data more securely”, you could say: “Every time I leave my workstation, I lock my screen with the Windows logo key + L hotkeys.” This strategy turns abstract goals into concrete actions, making them easier to achieve.

Small steps – Small habits

The idea of small habits is to break down your security goal into the smallest possible actions. For example, start by visibly wearing your visitor badge instead of big changes like I strictly follow all safety protocols.

These small habits are easier to incorporate into your daily routine than big, abstract goals. Over time, these small habits can lead to a safer working environment.

Write it down

Don’t underestimate the power of writing down. Writing down your intentions – I always use my password manager – makes them concrete and tangible. Keep your written intentions where you see them daily, in a notebook or as a background on your computer. These visual reminders will keep you focused and motivated.

Share your intentions

Share your intentions with your colleagues. This creates a sense of responsibility and sets a social norm. If those around you know that working safely and handling information securely is important to you, you feel more motivated to stick to it.

Reflect on it

Your intentions are not set in stone. It is important to regularly reflect on your behaviour and goals. Be prepared to adjust your intentions if necessary to adapt to new circumstances.

Integrating these five tips into your daily work can significantly improve your chances of making safe working a reality. Remember that improving takes time. Be patient, you didn’t learn to drive a car safely in one day either.

Good luck!

Join Awareways in achieving your resolutions: we’ll help you to improve your organisation’s cyber fitness in 2024!

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