New Year Resolutions – Yikes!

 

Here we are, at another New Year, that time when we set resolutions for the coming 12 months. Or try to. But here’s the thing, even with our best intentions, research shows that our resolutions rarely make it past 3 months. Sometimes not even past 3 weeks, or even 3 days. Sigh. But come on, we’re human, right? So we didn’t make it to the gym every day, we didn’t get up an hour earlier in the morning, we didn’t lose those pounds, we ditched the savings plan in favor of buying a new techie what’s-it, so? The world did not come to an end.

True. Yet those resolutions were meaningful to us. We didn’t make them lightly. And we really wanted to accomplish whatever those resolutions represented. We’re not lazy or stupid or without ambition, at least not for the most part. What went wrong?

S.M.A.R.T. We forgot to adopt resolutions that were Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-bound (S.M.A.R.T.). A process that management professionals have used for decades in facilitating not just goal-setting, but more importantly, goal-achieving.

How could this apply to New Year’s resolutions? Your resolution is to go to the gym every day. A laudable objective. Certainly, specific enough: “going to the gym” and “every day.” Is it measurable? Sure. “Every day” provides the measure. How about achievable? This is where most of us would stall. Every day? Hardly. There are days when you have to work early/late, days when you have to pick up/drop off the kids, days when a zillion other things interfere with “going to the gym.”

Maybe a back-track is in order. Instead, “specific” describes the time of day you set as your gym time, maybe the days of the week you intend to actually make it to the gym. Still measurable. Achievable? Much more so. Whew!

Next comes “relevant.” Uh . . . to what, you ask. Relevant to why do you want to get to the gym regularly in the first place? Surely, it’s not to show off your new Nike Ja-1 Chinese New Year sneakers? OK, maybe it is, but in addition to that, it’s because you’d like to be more fit, feel more energized. That’s why going to the gym regularly is relevant. Relevance is what motivates us. Relevance answers the “why” of why you set this resolution in the first place. Reminding yourself of the relevance of your gym resolution is what will support your ability to achieve your resolution.

Lastly, is your resolution time-bound? This is different from “measurable,” because “time-bound” will help you assess how you are doing with your resolution. Perhaps you set 3-month reviews of your success with your resolution. That not only shows how you stayed the course but in addition, can show how your success with your resolution contributes to the relevance of it. For example, are you more fit, do you feel more energized?  Setting periodic benchmarks to assess how you’re doing is important to keeping you motivated for the long haul.

That’s what it’s all about, isn’t it? A New Year resolution that’s S.M.A.R.T., not just for day one of the New Year, but for every day of the year, so that you can enjoy the terrific feeling of accomplishing what’s important to you.

Happy New Year!

Three Simple Questions To Ask Yourself To Keep Your New Year's Resolutions Alive

At the start of the New Year, most of us made promises to ourselves (i.e., lose weight, new job, save more). Now that the first month of 2018 is over, it's time to take stock on how well we're doing.

Some of us may need to make some adjustments. One way, is to look inside ourselves to make sure our inner self is on the right track." Here are three questions to ask.

  

Are You Being Honest With Yourself? How do you really feel about the thing you want to change--your body, your work, your finances?. It’s only when you admit the truth about your feelings to yourself that you can do anything about a situation so that change can occur.

How Faithful Are You? Not to your spouse or significant other (although that's obviously important). But how faithful are you to your commitment to get healthier, learn another skill, get a better job, save more? Do you have a 'tomorrow' attitude? Or an 'it’ll never happen, why bother' attitude? Instead, learn how to better meet your commitments to yourself--through setting baby-step goals, or brainstorming strategies with friends/counselors, reading up on what’s worked for others. It feels great to live up to your commitments. It’s a sure path to success.

What is Your Sense of Responsibility? Whenever something wonky happens, do you look first for someone to blame, including yourself? Or do you quickly start looking for a possible solution to whatever happened? Blame never gets anything done. Blaming yourself only makes you feel bad, and blaming others may make you feel good in the moment, but you’re still stuck with the issue.

Being honest with yourself, faithful and committed to a goal and willing to take responsibility are the first steps to problem-solving and reaching you New Year's Resolution goals. It's not too late. Real change never comes easy or quickly.

Don’t Settle: Get Inspired With New Year’s Resolutions for What You Really Want!

Atlanta’s Homeward Choir, a group of 26 homeless men from Atlanta’s Central Night Shelter, was invited to sing at the White House in December 2015. When the group got the invitation--and how that came about is a wonderful story --among the many questions the choir members asked of their director, Donal Noonan, was “Why us?” to which Noonan responded, “Why not us?”

And that is the question I invite you to ask yourself this New Year, as you make your New Year’s resolutions: Why not your biggest dream? Your dearest wish? Your fondest hope?

Why settle for “I will lose 20 pounds this year” when what you really want is a vibrant, healthy, strong body that just happens to also be 20 pounds lighter? Why settle for “I will get a new job” when what you really want is a job that’s a terrific fit for your skills and talents with a paycheck that rewards you accordingly?

You see, it’s hard to muster up the passion, enthusiasm and persistence it takes to realize your New Year’s resolutions when they’re lackluster. They need luster! Brilliance! Shine! How else are you going to commit to something that will take persistence and perseverance?

Yes, you do have to map out the steps to getting there. For your “vibrant, healthy, strong, 20 pound lighter body” you must figure out the diet and exercise plan that will allow you to fulfill your goal. In addition to a new mental conditioning that includes, in all likelihood, mindfulness and meditation, positive affirmations and the like. Probably also setting up a buddy system for yourself, so that you have the support you need along the way.

Will you be motivated to do all that just to lose 20 pounds? Not to mention the day to day focus that it takes! Maybe. But there’s a lot more pulling power towards your goal when you are aiming for what you really want: vibrant, healthy, strong and 20 pounds lighter.

The same thing applies to your “I will get a new job” resolution. Nice, but will your resolution sustain you through figuring out the skills you need to acquire or hone, finding the money, time and seminars/classes you need? Then through the resume process, the hunt for the right job process, the spiffing-yourself-up process, and everything else it takes to get a new job. Isn’t it far more inspiring to go for a “terrific job that’s a terrific fit with terrific pay” resolution (and why not add “terrific boss and terrific co-workers” to your resolution as well?!).

Why not? As W. Clement Stone famously said: “Always aim for the moon, even if you miss, you'll land among the stars.”