Every year I like to make new year's resolutions and compare them to the year before by crossing out all the items I’ve completed and carrying over the ones I still value. However, this year took a 180 in June and a lot of the things I had hoped to accomplish became irrelevant. I know some people don’t prescribe to the practice of new year's resolutions. I get that. Setting goals no matter what time of the year it is, is a personal decision. I am an extremely goal oriented person. I'm also notorious for setting too many goals, or incredibly unrealistic ones. This year when putting together my New Years Resolutions I tried to remember these tips to help guarantee success.
1. Set Calendar Reminders – I set mine for every 3-4 months with my resolutions pasted into the body of the event. It is important we hold ourselves accountable when embarking on new endeavors in business, exercise and especially creativity.
2. Clean House – My space is usually a reflection of the madness inside my head. If I’m organized then my mind feels organized. If everything around me is a mess then I probably need to set a coffee date with a friend because emotionally I’m peeling at the edges. So many people I know get overwhelmed with housework or cleaning. But it's a new year so remember to take it pile-by-pile and room-by-room. Find your inner minimalist and eventually the task becomes more manageable and every pile feels like a success.
3. Be Reasonable – Unless you are already working out 3 days a week, going from zero days to five is unrealistic. Yeah, it might work for one or two weeks, maybe even three, but most people get overwhelmed and just fall back into their former routines. Start small and build. For example, I’m going to exercise 3 days a week for two months, after two months I will increase it to 5 days.
4. Map Out Your Goals - There is nothing wrong with setting big goals but plan them out. If you want to get promoted this year make sure that you have set measurable goals for the months that lead up to you asking your boss. These milestones also make for good bargaining fodder and tools come the big convo.
5. Stay Calm and Carry On - We might not achieve everything we want in 2015 and that is ok. Even if you only complete half of what you set out to do, I consider that a win! It’s equally as important to forgive ourselves if we can’t meet the challenge. There’s always next year.
What are some of the tricks of the trade you use to stick to your goal setting?