We’re fans of New Year’s resolutions. It’s a great time to reflect on what you want to achieve in the year ahead, and what you want to change from year’s past.
This year, whether your resolution is to drink more coffee or incorporate tea as a part of your morning routine, we have five ways for you to keep your New Year’s resolutions.
1. Say what you mean, and mean what you say.
Be careful about how your resolutions are worded. If you say, “I need to eat right more,” then you’ll most likely become part of the 95% of people who don’t keep their New Year’s resolutions because your goal is not specific. But if you say, “I need to eat 1 apple a day and only enjoy chocolate on Sunday,” then you’ve got a resolution with specific measurements.
2. Turn 365 days into 21 days.
In other words, shorten your resolution goal from one year to three weeks. That makes your resolution turn into a NFL football season instead of a marathon. A football season lasts 17 weeks, which, if you make each resolution period three weeks, then you’ll just about have 17 New Year resolution sessions over the course of a year. Like football, each session you go to battle. At the end of the session, you either won or lost. Keep a record for yourself on whether you won or lost during these three weeks, and find out if your New Year resolution “season” was like the Green Bay Packers or the Indianapolis Colts.
3. Start small.
Rome wasn’t built in a day, so don’t try to build Rome because it’s the first of the year. Instead, start with a goal that’s very easy to achieve. For example, if you have a fitness related goal, a way to start small is to commit to just drive to the gym everyday. You don’t even have to work out. You could show up at the gym and drink a coffee. But by just driving to the gym, you’re making headway to incorporate working out into your daily routine.
4. Visualize what you’ll look like.
Post a picture on your wall of what a successful achievement of your resolution looks like. By visualizing what you’ll look like by achieving your resolution, and being constantly reminded of that picture you’ve posted, you’ll be that much more motivated to work towards your resolution.
5. Start now.
Resolutions don’t have to be made on the first of the year. They can be made in July, September or any other time when you feel a change is necessary in your life.
The key is putting that resolution into visual terms on your wall, starting small and breaking down your achievement schedule into a NFL like season. If you do that, you’ll be among the 5% of people who keep their New Year’s resolutions.
For a list of resolutions from Laughing Man, click here.
