Start Right: Why New Year’s Resolutions Won’t Help You

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[dropcaps round=”no”][/dropcaps]Today is January 1. The year is brand new and there are almost 365 days ahead of you. If you’re setting resolutions for the year, I’m sorry to disappoint you, but you’re wasting your time. Be honest, have they ever worked for you? When have you set resolutions and actually stuck to them? I gave up on doing that years ago when I found a way that worked better for me.

Don’t get me wrong, I can definitely say that this is the year that you finally get to do most of those things you’ve been putting on hold. That hobby you said you would take up? The business you really want to start? What of the traveling you said you would do? Going back to school… We each have our dreams; dreams we’ve put on hold for one reason of the other. Well, this is the year to make a positive move in the right direction.

There is nothing wrong in not doing the things you had planned on doing. When I was younger, there were several things I thought I would have accomplished by now. But I haven’t. Mostly because I put some of my dreams and plans on hold as I had children and raised a family. I have decided that this is the year I get started on working towards most of my dreams. I know it’s not going to be easy; My hands are full. But I’m going to make an effort.

If you have made goals or you have a list of items you want to achieve, there are a few things you can do to ensure that you make good progress:

1. Get rid of resolutions. Okay, there’s nothing wrong with having a New Year’s resolution, but the truth is that they don’t work. It’s easy to say you’re going to lose weight in 2014, but how is that going to happen? So cancel your resolutions and set goals instead.

2. Have a plan. Don’t just keep your desires in your head. Write down what you want to achieve in 2014.

3. Have timelines. Set dates for what you want to achieve and work towards those dates.

4. Be kind to yourself. The truth is that you might miss your targets. Accept it now and plan to deal with it. If you planned to lose 20kg by March, and that hasn’t happened once March comes around, don’t despair. Instead revise your plan and look for why you didn’t meet the mark.

5. Be realistic. 20kg in 3 months is definitely possible. But a more realistic plan (especially if you don’t intend to starve yourself) is to plan for 4-5 kg a month. This article gives practical tips on how to set achievable goals for yourself; click here to read it.

6. Celebrate the ‘small’ successes. Once you make some progress towards achieving your goals, stop and celebrate. Encourage yourself.

7. Trust God to make your plans come true. It doesn’t matter what religion you practice, you already know that without God, life is harder. So commit your ways to him.

If you want a guide on how you can evaluate your priorities and set goals, including an outline for organizing your goals, this article by Forbes should help. Click here to read it.

So are you setting goals this year?