We all know the drill. Every year around December you begin making a list of “New Year’s Resolutions” and goals that you hope to achieve in the new year. The resolutions consist of anything from health goals to work plans. Come January 1st, your motivation and confidence is practically overflowing. You can’t wait to hit the gym for the first time or write down all your goals in a brand new calendar. But in a matter of days, all your motivation has dissipated. You no longer yearn to prep your 3 course vegan paleo meals when it’s so much easier to just order takeout. This article will give readers a step by step guide on how to attack those resolutions and keep them going well into the new year.
- Setting Achievable Resolutions
A person who has never ran a day in their life before isn’t automatically going to start running 5 miles a day just because they made a New Year’s resolution. To achieve your goals, those goals need to be within reach of your own physical and mental limits. When making a New Year’s resolution you need to be sure to check in with yourself and really know if the resolution can be achieved by you. Resolutions that are too far out of your reach or even too close within your reach will end up being counterproductive and push you farther away from your goals. Making resolutions that are within your grasp are the first step to bettering yourself and increasing your motivation in the new year.
- Finding Out What Works For You
Approaching your resolutions can only work if you approach them in a method that works for you. Do you need a silent environment? Do you need to tackle your resolutions with someone by your side? Do you need to make a specific purchase to help your journey? What worked for someone else may not necessarily be right for you and vice versa. Through experimentation, find out what you need to be your best self. Finding what works for you and putting it to use will significantly boost your motivation and ensure success.
- Allow Yourself To Learn Something New
Change doesn’t happen instantly. And when you are trying to accomplish daunting New Year’s resolutions it is often a long process. Throughout this process, allow yourself to take past mistakes and learn from them to change your approach in the future. Additionally, you don’t need to learn from only yourself. Broaden your horizons and research people who have taken the same journey as you. Reading about others will not only boost your ambition but it will also give you advice and a helping hand as you learn. The significance of this step is to show that New Year’s resolutions can be a learning process that changes and adapts with you, it doesn’t have to be a success-failure process that forces you to give up after two days
- Marking Your Progress
When it comes to New Year’s Resolutions that you make every year, it can often feel like you are going through a tireless journey with no results. Tracking your progress throughout your journey can easily defeat this feeling. Everyday take a few moments to jot down what you accomplished towards your bigger goal. You can keep your records in a journal dedicated to your resolutions or just simply write it in the notes app of your phone. This will help you keep track of how much progress you have made and motivate you to keep pushing towards your goal.
- Reward Yourself
One of the most common misconceptions when it comes to resolutions is that you have to be hard on yourself to get to where you want to be. But that is simply not true. Every time you make a positive step towards your resolution you deserve to be proud. Rewarding yourself every time you successfully work towards your resolution is a healthy method of motivating yourself and acknowledging positive behavior. Whether you decide to buy yourself a pair of new shoes or give yourself a compliment in the mirror, make sure that you recognize your progress and give yourself the recognition you deserve.