With every new year comes new resolutions. A New Year is a time to reflect on the changes we want in our lives ; a time to flip a new page and focus on new goals or habits.
Every year, at least 45% of americans make new resolutions but only 8% are successful at accomplishing them.
So what do the people who are successful at attaining their goals know that the rest of us don't? , and How can we become successful at following through with our new year's resolutions and achieving our goals?.
As I was researching and mulling over these questions for the past three weeks, I came up with a list of things to do to help stick with the new year's resolutions or goals:
- Write it down: The very first thing you need to do is define your new resolutions and write them down. Writing down your goals makes them more clear and concrete. You will be a lot less overwhelmed when you can see it rather than think it. It helps you move from the phase of dreaming to making your dream a reality.
- Make SMART goals and track your progress:
Specific: Your goals should be specific not broad, vague goals. Example: I would like to lose 20 pounds (specific) vs. I want to lose weight (Vague).
Measurable: You should be able to measure them. If it's not possible to measure your goals, make a scale from 0 to 10 for example with 0 being the worst and 10 being the best.
Achievable: Your goals need to be realistic; not something that is highly unlikely and almost impossible to achieve.
Relevant: You should have good and important reasons for wanting to make these resolutions. Your goals should matter to you; they need to hold an importance to accomplishing them. If not, you will most than likely end up giving up before even making any visible progress.
Time bound: Establish a time frame to your goals. Whether it takes 6 months or 6 years to get it done, you should always set a time boundary for whatever you are trying to achieve. You will have an easier time tracking your progress and moving forward when you know when it needs to be done.
For more on creating SMART goals, refer to this post.
- Commitment:
According to Wikipedia; "A New Year's resolution is a commitment that a person makes to one or more personal goals, projects, or the reforming of a habit. A key element to a New Year's Resolution that sets it apart from other resolutions is that it is made in anticipation of the New Year and new beginnings. People committing themselves to a New Year's resolution generally plan to do so for the whole following year. This lifestyle change is generally interpreted as advantageous."
When you are committed to something, your only option is to go through with what you are committed to do. Giving up is not an option. When you narrow your options down to one; not giving up, you have already set yourself up for success because it is your only option.
- Excuses Excuses Excuses:
We all have experienced setbacks and had to face our failures by making up excuses for not going through with our resolutions. Realize that setbacks will happen and you have to be prepared with an action plan. Step back and reflect on all the excuses that you usually allow yourself to believe for giving up on your goal and create strategies for dealing with them. What caused those setbacks and what can you do different this time around to avoid them?
- Procrastination:
I confess, I am one big procrastinator. Mind you, I do get a lot of things done but I wait until the last minute to get them completed. I am not the one to start a project right after it has been presented. I usually wait until the last day OR the same day to start. I like to work under pressure so when there is no deadline, that project never gets done. If you are a procrastinator or you like to work under pressure, have an external deadline. Create a realistic deadline (not too far in the future and not too close making it almost impossible and highly stressful to accomplish) and have someone; who you would not like to disappoint, hold you accountable for it.
- Take it one cake, one bite at a time:
Growth is an erratic forward movement: two steps forward, one step back. Remember that and be very gentle with yourself. Julia Cameron
This is when the power of focus comes to mind. Many of us have a long list of resolutions. We want to lose weight, get more organized, run a marathon, get out of debt, learn a new language, start a scrapbook, a blog, socialize more often and the list goes on and on.When you attempt to do it all, your attention gets pulled in different directions which makes you lose focus and at the end nothing gets done ; you just end up more frustrated. When you are making your list of new year's resolutions, narrow it down to only a few goals; don't try to do it all or all at the same time. When you think you can do it all or try to do it all, you are already setting yourself up for failure. You have to recognize that you have limited resources that you need to use wisely. So keep what's important to you on your list and focus on those few resolutions for now.
- Get out of your comfort zone: We all have comfort zones where we stay in what's familiar to us and fear to venture out elsewhere. We usually stick to the path of least resistance. But to be able to change habits or experience a personal growth, we need to leave our familiar comfort zone to the unfamiliar road of change.
A dream is your creative vision for your life in the future. You must break out of your current comfort zone and become comfortable with the unfamiliar and the unknown. Denis Waitley
When you give yourself a chance to stretch beyond your comfort zone, you give yourself a chance to make your dreams a reality. Noone changed his life by sticking to the familiar. You will most likely feel some type of fear, anxiety, and stress but at the same time you will feel a sense of confidence. Confidence that you have what it takes to be successful and arrive at your desired destination.
- Forget about the past, enjoy the present, and focus on the future:
“Forget past mistakes. Forget failures. Forget everything except what you're going to do now and do it.” ― William Durant
Don't ask "Why" but rather ask "What". What can I do to go through with my new year's resolutions. Focus on the future and stay positive in your road to success.
- Associate a bad habit with a negative feeling:
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit. - Aristotle
Is one of you new year's resolution to stop smoking, drinking, overeating, or any other bad habit that stands between who you are and who you want to become? You are not the only one. Noone is perfect but it helps to recognize the bad habits that stand between us and success and try to change them. The first step to improvement is to be honest with yourself and recognize the habit you need to work on or let go of and comtemplate the possibility of replacing it with a good habit. Start with one habit at a time and make it a 30 day challenge to change that habit or develop a new one. Don't be afraid to ask friends or family members for help. Noone succeeded by doing it all on his own.
So whether you are trying to form a new habit or make a dream come true, I hope that you will be able to find this list helpful in helping you achieve what you have set your mind to this new year. Be determined to make every day a better day and don't forget to have fun and enjoy life on your road to your dreams.
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How to organize your way to a balanced life
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