How To Make A New Year's Resolution
We all start the year with new goals in mind. At the start of 2018, I started formalizing my resolutions and have been able to complete all of them since then. How did I do that? A lot goes in to creating the goals, so I’m sharing my tips.
Write them down. This is a must. Writing a goal down makes it real, makes it tangible and puts pen to paper that you’re committed to it. I prefer pen and paper vs. a note in my phone.
Keep it reasonable. Don’t write something down that will be too far fetched to happen. If you’re planning on exercising every single day, that might not be within reach (even if you’d like to be) - but perhaps exercising 2x/week is more reasonable. Plus, if you make it 4x/week that’s just a bonus! Setting the expectations on the lower side sets you up for success and is less likely to put you into a shame spiral if you fall short. As long as it’s more than you’re doing now, I think the goal is worth making.
Put the list somewhere you can see it frequently. Like daily. Constantly reminding yourself of your goals will help keep them fresh in your mind.
Categorize the list. I like thinking of my goals in buckets: personal, fitness (as it relates to my fitness instructor job), relationships, and business. Personal goals include self improvement or financials, fitness goals include physical milestones (classes taught, miles ran, etc.), relationship goals include actions I am taking with family or friends, and business goals have goals like total income or number of clients added.
Quantify the goals. “Be better at making phone calls” is not a resolution. “Make 3 phones per week” is. Keeping it gray lends itself to getting left behind. In fact, the one resolution I feel like I didn’t really keep this year is the only one that didn’t have a number associated with it.
Give yourself flexibility to change your mind. Maybe a goal you set isn’t reasonable anymore - like not running a marathon because you broke your leg - and that’s okay. Leave it be, reflect on it later and make next year’s resolutions accordingly. There are plenty of ways to grow outside of your resolutions that you can be grateful for, too.
