I stopped making New Year’s Resolutions a few years ago, why? Because they just don’t work!
With different surveys putting the date people give up on their resolutions between 10-30 days after it was made, why would I wait for January 1st to make a change? Add that to the fact that humans just aren’t built to make changes light a light switch.
Things to Consider
Are you ready to make a change? Most often, people make a change based on outer influences—their doctor thinks they should lose weight, or their best friend needs a gym partner, or they just think they have to because it’s January 1st.
Your resolutions and your goals are more likely to stick if you are making the change for yourself.
Is It Too Much All at Once?
You make a resolution to lower your carbon footprint in the new year, so you immediately stop driving your car to work. What you forgot when making that decision was that you live in the snowstorm capital of America and have 8am meetings on Mondays. You quit after you are late for the first one.
Try setting small daily goals instead—spend half the amount of time idling as you did last winter, buy a reusable water container, start a carpool with some folks from your office. Small daily goals add up to big changes—and these small goals are much easier to manage.
Is Your Goal SMART?
In business, we often talk about SMART objectives—goals that are specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and time-limited.
If your New Year’s resolution is to “be more successful”—what does that mean? How will you measure that success? A much better goal would be to look at your numbers for the previous year—income or sales depending on your personal situation—and say, “by this time next year, I aim to have 10% more income or sales.”
Do You Have a Plan?
A goal without a plan is just a dream—your plan turns it into reality. When making your goal, outline a plan on how to achieve it – this will also help you to realize whether or not the goal is realistic and attainable.
Armed with these considerations, go ahead and make a resolution—but not because of what it says on the calendar!
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