Well another year has come and gone! Being 1st January, you’re probably starting to think about what you’re going to do differently in the coming 12 months and how to make it better. If you are making a few resolutions today here is my twist on ensuring they stay with you for a lot longer than a couple days, or even hours.
A resolution comes about because we have a sense, a feeling that something in our life could be better. Change is a natural desire but not always easy. You talk about the results you want to have instead, and set these as goals to reach and aspire to and feel motivated to achieve … TODAY!
Commonly, you may start by looking at what you don’t want in your life, what you want to change. It could be related to health, fitness, personal growth, or something better for yourself and your family. Start by defining what each goal means to you. Take a piece of paper and write down 3 results you’d like to have in a month’s time, 6 months time and 12 months time.
Another way to do it is to dream, and dream big – if money, responsibilities and other commitments were not an issue – that if you could wave a magic wand – what would you wish for. Again write down three things you’d like to have done, experienced, and accomplished in 2012.
But the problem with all that is it’s living in the future. It’s not about the here and now. We live moment by moment, making choices consciously and unconsciously all the time. All that matters is what we do now, this second. By all means have a strong goal– in fact the stronger the better as it can pull us through the tough times.
But at the same time if it is too far fetched we can lose touch with it. Also its important to make sure the goal you are working for is something you really want, not just something that sounds good and these are major reasons that resolutions fail so quickly. Many New Year’s Resolutions are more likely to be whims, I wishs, impulses, and not real, unshakable decisions.
So if you would like 2012 to BE your year and to ensure your resolutions are unshakable then here is my tip to keep you on track and refocus your focus.
If your “traditional” resolution is to “get fit” to take an example, then
(a) define what that means to you, what getting fit actually means to you, and then
(b) write down and commit to what needs to change on a daily basis. You see, walking 10 minutes a day is much more beneficial and more likely to work, than say saving it all up and walking 70 minutes once a week.
An activity we do on a daily basis is much more likely to become a habit, become automatic, a part of you, and when it becomes a habit you won’t have to “talk yourself into it”. It is these simple actions that will accumulatively propel you towards your goal. Focus on the action rather than the result. If you re-define your New Year’s Resolution to something simple, like walking 10 minutes a day (the positive action), rather than getting fit (the positive result), over time the result will happen anyway.
So ask youself, what simple (yes really) things can I do daily that will make a difference accumulatively.
You will not see the results straight away but making a commitment, a resolution to the daily action, will mean the results will come.
Put your positive actions on paper and pin it somewhere you can see it too!
You see nothing changes until something changes, otherwise it stays the same! Without a plan and some simple daily actions this year could end up pretty much the same as 2011. Go out there and do something!
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