New Year Resolutions 2020
To Have Or Not?
New Year’s Resolutions 2020
Happy New Year 2020. It’s the first day of the year and I suppose we are all busy making merry and new year resolutions.
Well, I made a lot of merriments but no New Year resolutions.
I was having New Year’s lunch with some close friends, and was asked what was my New Year’s resolution 2020? I immediately said “No, I don’t have any; and I’ve not made any since umpteenth years ago”.
The reason I gave up making resolutions years ago is that resolutions have never worked for me. I rarely achieve my New Year’s resolution each year.
According to one survey,”Thirteen percent of respondents reported never even starting their New Year’s resolution, and over half of Americans failed their resolution while still in the month of January!”. If you are one of those rare people who actually do achieve your New Year’s resolutions every year, congratulations! If you are like me who has never successfully achieved any New Year’s resolutions…..read on.
Why New Year Resolutions Don’t Work?
Having a New Year resolution is similar to having a goal. However, it mainly does not work because it is a set annual goal that you resolve to achieve but not necessary what you really want to do or have fun doing. In most cases, there is no continued motivation or commitment as the year moves on and we are hit with the daily activities and situations that distract us from our resolutions.
My Approach On New Year’s Resolutions
If you are following me, it’s okay to let go of New Year’s resolutions. Throw them out the window and into the bin.
Wait. Does that mean we should not make any goals or resolutios in life? Of course not.
Goals actually give us purpose in life. The difference between successful goals/resolutions and an unsuccessful New Year’s resolution/goal is to set realistic achievable goals/resolutions that is a part of you and what you really want accomplish to get the best out of life. So how can we set goals like a history maker?
- Reflect and plan your life. What are your top life values? What principles do you want to uphold? What are the things that must happen between now and the last day of your life for you to feel you have lived a beautiful successful life?
- Define what you want to accomplish. Be strategic. Don’t live in reactive mode.
- Be precise with your goal. Clarity breeds mastery.
- Deconstruct your goal. Truly understand why you want to do it, how you are going to achieve it and then create a do-able game plan.
- Keep a journal. It organizes your thinking and allows you to review your thoughts and actions.
- Redefine your goal if you need to. Nothing is permanent.
- Be patient and kind to yourself to allow setbacks and resets.
My Actions
I focus on daily intentions to realise my goals. Every day, I journal a daily actionable list with my end goal in mind. Before I go to bed, I will note what I want to achieve the next day in accordance to my goal and write down 3 to 5 activities I must do. When I complete my list for the day, I celebrate my achievement. This approach allows me to be in the moment and when my intentions for each day are completed, I am kept motivated and this makes it easy for me to stay committed. Journalling makes it easy for me to keep track, to dissect my thoughts and actions if I need to and allows me to see how far I have journeyed to be where I am.
What You Can Do
Try it. For example, if you want to get healthy and fitter, just write down 3 to 5 simple healthy things that you can succeed for each day.
1. Drink 8 glasses of water
2. Do 3 sets of ten squats morning and evening.
3. Salad for lunch
4. Take a 15 minit walk.
5. Go dancing with a friend.
Write a new achievable list every day. Make it short/easy/fun/do-able. Complete your list before the end of the day. Remember to celebrate your own small wins each day. You will feel great about your daily achievements. Do this consistently and before you know it, you will see the full result of your everyday actions.
I truly trust this will help you walk the little steps to your success. Feel free to let me know how it goes. Cheers for now and bye bye to New Year’s Resolutions 2020.
