Turn Your New Year’s Resolution into Reality
How many times have you made a New Year’s resolution on December 31st at midnight with all the intentions of making it a reality? And then, it doesn’t happen. Or you know friends and family that make New Year’s resolutions every year and every year they don’t make them happen. There is a reason for this. We have too many resolutions and we don’t make them specific. Use these steps to turn your New Year’s resolution into reality.
Only have one resolution to work on at a time. Many of us make too many resolutions which set us up for failure. Take your list, if you have one, and prioritize it. This allows you to pick the one resolution you want to work on. Depending on the goal and the timeline, you might be able to do a second resolution from your list later in the year. The main point, work on only one resolution at a time. This allows for maximum success.
Make the resolution specific. For example: “I’m going to lose weight this year.” Is that specific? No. It’s a very vague goal without much hope of becoming reality. A better, more specific way to define that goal is: “I’m going to lose 10 lbs. by April 1st of this year.” That is a very specific goal. The amount of weight is defined as well as a timeline. To define it, even more, would be: “I’m going to lose 10 lbs. by April 1st of this year by going to the gym 3 days a week.” The more specific you can make your goal the better your chances of making it happen.
Break that goal down into small manageable steps. “I’m going to lose 2 lbs. per month with exercising 3 days a week and cutting out 1 sugary drink per day.” You now have a roadmap of how you’re going to lose the 10 lbs. by April 1st. By breaking the goal down, you reduce the possibility of feeling overwhelmed, which can stop you from reaching your goal. Break it down by months, weeks, or days depending on the goal.
Have someone help you stay accountable. Be it a friend, family member, co-worker. We all have days when we don’t want to do something. Having that person, you can reach out, helps you push through those days and reach your goal.
You will have times when you fall off the “wagon”. That’s just fine. Don’t let that stop you. Acknowledge that you did and then pick back up where you left off. Don’t let that one time keep you from reaching your goal.
Having only one resolution at a time, making it specific, breaking it down into manageable steps, and having someone help you stay accountable will help you turn your New Year’s resolution into reality.
If you would like help in getting your resolution set-up for success, happy to help!