Coming into a new year can be overwhelming, I agree. 2019 hopefully had a lot of good things for you in it, but I'm sure there are some things you would have liked to improve on or change all together - especially, if you had a crystal ball. Am I right?
For me, 2019 was a major learning curve. I learned so much about myself professionally as I took my business to the next level and then personally as I navigated through my marriage with those new endeavors. I learned what it was like to be vulnerable but also what it was like to set boundaries. Boundaries are so important and they are necessary in all of your relationships.
What I would like to do in 2020 is practice more with filtering out all the noise. Noise as in things and people that don't share in my purpose - we all need to reciprocate if we're going to make anything work together. This goes for maintaining friendships, taking on new commitments and creating new opportunities in our lives to improve it and change it for the better.
Here are some common new year's resolutions people make around this time - do any of them look familiar?
1. Exercise more.
2. Lose weight.
3. Get organized.
4. Learn a new skill or hobby.
5. Live life to the fullest.
6. Save more money/ spend less money.
7. Quit smoking.
8. Spend more time with family and friends.
9. Travel more.
10. Read more.
Turns out, only 46% of new year resolvers were successful and only 4% of those made it if they just set a particular goal. Yikes!
You know why?
Well, because change takes change. You can't just say it's going to happen and it happens - it's a process.
Here are 10 steps to making your resolutions a reality in 2020:
1. Mentally prepare for change. That means planning for gradual change, allow room for error and stay positive.
2. Set a goal that motivates you...not your mom, not your spouse, YOU. If your goals align with your priorities, dreams and aspirations, chances are you will will do what it takes to make it happen. And if your mom or spouse supports you - bonus. If not, oh well.
3. Set a goal or goals that are realistic aka don't bite off more than you can chew. If you have multiple goals for the new year, try and determine if there is a common thread among them that might make one easier to accomplish once another one is complete. I kinda like to pretend it's like a game of Yatzee. I put all my dice into the cup, do the appropriate legwork needed to assign a task to each of those dice and then *SWOOSH* send them out. When they come back, the plan comes together and the goal is accomplished.
4. Be specific about your goal. I'm sure you've heard the SMART acronym tossed around a couple of times at work conferences. It lays out that successful goals are Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time-sensitive...goals need a deadline or else there's no urgency to getting them done and they cease to be a goal.
5. Break big goals into smaller goals. Lay them out visually, prioritize them, allocate resources to each of those smaller goals and focus on those instead of the big, big goal.
If your goal for the new year is in fact to exercise more, then break that up into maybe spending the first 2 to 4 weeks just being more active in a day. So instead of eating lunch in the lunchroom while on your phone, eat lunch and then go for a 15 to 20 minute walk around the neighborhood or parking lot. You can still be on your phone (if you must!) but you'll be moving. I literally watched before my eyes, two of my coworkers lose weight just by walking for a half hour everyday on lunch. How hard is it to go for a walk?
6. Write down your goals. This probably seams silly but it really does keep you focused when you write down a goal. It's like saying something you've been thinking out loud. It makes it more real. "I love you" out loud for the first time to the person you love is a heck of a lot more permanent than saying it in your head! Don't forget, these can be daily goals too. What do you want to have accomplished at the end of today?
7. Share your resolutions with others. I am actually not a huge fan of this one because a lot of times people think this means tell social media. Big deal if IG or FB knows about these goals - they're not going to hold you accountable or help you when you struggle. If you want to share your resolution with someone, then tell someone who cares and will be there to help when you need it.
8. Automate where possible. An example of this for me is keeping an electronic calendar. I put things into it as needed and it tells me where and when I need to do it in ample time. A traditional calendar would not work well for me because of that....plus I have major OCD about my handwriting and couldn't handle things not matching in my planner. Don't judge! Hahaha but seriously, find a system that works for you because once you are organized, you can not only hit the ground running with these goals but you can accomplish them in a fraction of the time by doing so.
9. Revisit your resolution regularly. This keeps your efforts focused on that goal. A neat trick I heard about doing is setting the password to your computer to something that relates to your goal so you have to acknowledge it everyday. Like "beN!cetoPeople" or "@uitSmoki#g".
10. Probably the most important tip of all in making any of this stick is that it's not all or nothing to get to your goals. It's never going to be a straight shot and when you waiver just get right back to it as soon as you can. Also, keep in mind that changing how you decide to attain your goal is not failure. Failure is literally giving up and stopping all processes towards your goal. It's not a straight line - you will need to pivot, you will hit a wall and you might even take a couple of steps back but as long as your continue to pursuit that goal you will not fail. Promise.
Well I hope that was helpful! Definitely inspired me for the new year just writing it for you!
So tell me, what are your goals for 2020?