I know that we haven’t even celebrated Christmas yet but I’m a planner so I started thinking about the new year.  It is full of possibilities!  Those possibilities only come to fruition though if you make a conscious effort to achieve your goals.  Now I know the word New Year’s resolution is a joke to many.  People set resolutions only to break them 2 weeks later.  Why does this keep happening over and over again?  I think there a few key reasons!

1. The definition of the word resolve is to solve again or another attempt to solve a problem. Why are we so hard on ourselves when at first we don’t succeed?  Brush off the failure and figure out another way to solve the problem or achieve the goal that you have set. Remember the old proverb “If at first you don’t succeed, Try, try, try again. ” Figure out why you failed and resolve anew to reach your goal.  Too many of us see failure as a negative but if we choose to see if as a positive then we can grow from the failure and become stronger.

2. Don’t set one overwhelming goal that is so hard to achieve that you set yourself up for failure.  Let’s take the example of losing weight.  So many people resolve to lose 20 or 30 pounds in the new year.  That’s an achievable goal for many but we set ourselves up for failure if we don’t change our mindset a little bit.  First, instead of one goal put several on your list. Second, put goals on your list that add to your life not take away from it.  If instead of a weight loss goal I change my goals to learning a new healthy recipe every week, making it to the gym 3 times a week and reading a book on healthy living them I’ve added to my well-being.  Hopefully the side effect will be weight loss!  If that doesn’t happen from taking these steps then we go back to step one and re-solve the problem. What was it in your strategy for weight loss that didn’t work.  At the very least you have succeeded in learning new things so you can feel good that you have achieved rather than failed!

3. Reward yourself at the end of the year if you have achieved the goals you have set.  A very close friend of mine decided a while ago that when she turned 40 she would treat herself to a girls trip.  Shortly before her 40th birthday she attended a nutrition seminar that opened her mind to a whole new way of living.  She had always strived to be healthier but never knew how to achieve her goal.  The seminar gave her a path to wellness.  She decided to postpone the trip and use it as incentive to stay on the path that was set before her.  If she was successful she would go on that trip at the end of her 40th year.  I’m happy to say, so far so good!

4. Give yourself and end point!  Committing to something for a whole year is daunting! Maybe set your resolution for the 1st three months of the year.  Hopefully by the end of that three months you will want to keep up with whatever it is you have resolved to do. Changing your mindset can make all the difference in whether you even make it through that first three months!

Above all else, take time to be good to yourself and those around you.  It’s not the tangible things in life but the relationships you have that make life rich!  I’m taking off the next 2 weeks to spend time with my family and focus on creating holiday memories!  See you in 2017!