New Years Resolutions & How To Stick To Them
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Every. Single. Year. I make New Years Resolutions… and every single year they are broken sometime before the end of January… I know I know what a disaster ! This year I am determined that it will be different!
For starters I think I am more determined now more than ever to really stick to my resolutions. Becoming a mom and being able to work from home has changed so much about my life and what I am able to achieve on a daily basis. Somethings are easier and somethings are harder but all in all there is still so much I want to accomplish!
This time around I thought I would do some research on how to achieve and stick to New Years resolutions and I discovered some of the tips and tricks and I thought I’d share them with you!
STEP 1: The first thing you will want to do is get a journal or a notebook or even using Notes on your phone, and start writing down all of your resolutions, goals, and dreams. Write down EVERYTHING.. and I mean everything. Maybe you want to learn a language, or start a new hobby, or quit your job, or go sailing, or cook a certain recipe.. whatever it is no matter how big or small write it all down. I use my bullet journal for this step and you can watch as I set up the journal for the New Year in the link below!
I find that this helps you really focus in on what you really want to achieve and maybe even recognize which items are smaller and easier to accomplish versus items that may take more planning or require more effort.
My favorite journal to use by far is from Minimalism Art! I absolutely love the soft cover journals in black and have purchased this for a second time in a row. They also have them in hard cover which is awesome as well! The paper is amazing quality, the book is sturdy yet flexible and I love the size. I highly recommend this book if you already bullet journal or want to get into it!
Step 2: Analyze your list and really determine which items are your top priority and perhaps eliminate the ones that may distract you from what you really want to achieve. This way you aren’t spreading yourself too thin and you have time to focus on specific priorities.
Also if your goals are a little vague this is a good time to break them down and really focus in on what you are trying to achieve. For example if you wrote down loose weight, instead maybe focus on how much weight you want to loose, specifically 10-15-100 pounds! Or if you want to learn a language, determine how fluent you want to become.. perhaps you just want to be able to get around when traveling or perhaps you really want to dive in and read books in that language! The world is your oyster and I say dive right in!
Step 3: Get to planning & determine what tools you will need in your arsenal to achieve your resolutions and goals. Are you looking to become more muscular? Maybe you need to get some weights or sign up at a gym. Want to budget better? Perhaps you need to purchase a budgeting notebook to keep you focused on your goal.
Then take some time and plan how you are going to integrate this new goal(s) into your daily life. Take your time on this step and really analyze how you spend your time and what available energy you are going to be able to commit to your goals/resolutions.
I think this is where a lot of people fail before they even begin. They make lots of grand plans and schemes but they never actually take the time to plan it out. Again writing this all out will force you to confront these issues and make you question how and why you want to achieve your goal.. This will help in the long run in achieving what you want to accomplish because you are already setting aside the time and resources required to succeed!
Step 4: Start out with small itsy bitsy baby steps! Some people think they have to have a drastic change over night in order to achieve their goals.. but in most cases this is where people fail.. because the reality is you most likely won’t adapt that quickly to a large and dramatic lifestyle change.
For example: If your goal is to work out at the gym 5 days a week for an hour.. don’t start out by going to the gym 5 days a week for an hour. You will get over tired and trust me you will find a reason not to go in week two and it will be too easy to quit. Instead take it easy and start with going 2-3 days a week for 15 or 30 minutes. Get comfortable with this new lifestyle and take sometime learning how this new habit will fit into your daily routine. For example when going to the gym, you may need to prep extra clothes, water bottle, energy bar etc.. Practice a couple times and get comfortable with the process.
By setting smaller tasks and goals you are setting yourself up for success because they are easier to accomplish and when you achieve them you will feel very proud and will be more determined to stick to your overall goal.
Step 5: Be patient with yourself! Rome was not built in a day and you can’t expect yourself to accomplish a new goal or resolution overnight. It takes time and effort and sometimes a little money. So be patient and allow yourself to have setbacks. The important thing to remember is that with any setback you just get right back into remembering why you wanted to achieve the goal in the first place.
If you ate something you shouldn’t have.. or perhaps skipped a few days at the gym or forgot to enter a week of budgeting don’t give up! Just set aside some time to reset and refocus on why you wanted to achieve this goal and perhaps reevaluate how you can keep working at it.
Step 6: Reward yourself and be proud of what you did accomplish! If by January 31st you lost 1 pound or went to the gym 10x or walked once a day, or spent 20 hours learning a new language.. whatever it is BE PROUD OF YOURSELF! It isn’t easy to change and with everything going on it can be hard to add a challenging goal into the mix. But if you are working at it slowly. but surely you will see results and you will be proud of all the work and effort you put in to achieving your goal!
