With the holiday season in full swing it’s a time for us to come together, be thankful, and take a break from our often hectic lives. It’s also a time for us to turn over a new leaf. Additionally, with the new year quickly approaching many of us have started to create resolutions we’d like to accomplish. However, sometimes we don’t always complete the goals we started in the beginning of the year.
So why don’t we stay on track? Well, often we set unfeasible goals at first and when we fail, give up on a successful outcome.
For instance, many people have a desire to lose a large amount of weight for their New Year’s resolution. Often spouting they want to lose 40 pounds in one month, but this is a pretty impractical goal. A more realistic and feasible effort would involve making a plan to hit the gym at least 3 times a week to be healthy. You’ll eventually lose that weight, and feel less stressed in the process of doing so.
It’s better to set up small weekly tasks that will help you achieve your final goal rather than trying to tackle a large feat from the beginning. Moreover, this can apply to any of your goals you’d like to accomplish and when used on daily basis will help you get ahead.
Another cause of unsuccessful resolutions? Losing focus or motivation to finish the task we set out to accomplish.
Surround yourself with what you want. Let’s say one of your resolutions is to save up enough money to finally go to Bora Bora this summer, keep everything visual and surround yourself with where you want to be in the next year. Maybe you hang up motivating words around your home, maybe you mark up a calendar of the days you’ve completed, and maybe you even collect pictures that become a daily reminder of what should be done.
Whatever it is, surround yourself physically with your goals and future.
Keep progress. Goals such as saving money, losing weight, or even opening a business are big goals that take time. However, remember that everyday you make an effort towards your success (no matter how small) is worth celebrating or at least documenting to remember how far you’ve come. Whether it be a journal or online blog, use daily self reflection inspire motivation and drive.
Reward yourself. Maybe you’ve done so well saving up money you’ve noticed you have a little extra to spend on yourself. Maybe you’ve been excellent with your diet and go out eat with your family. Go ahead, have that piece of cake, buy yourself the small item you’ve been wanting for months. Remember while it’s important to focus on your goals, it’s also important to treat yourself for all the hard work you’ve accomplished thus far.
Don’t beat yourself up. Maybe you’ve been slacking the past couple of weeks to meet your goals or maybe something drastic put your plans on pause. Whatever it may be, remember, it’s okay to slip up. Successful people don’t become successful overnight, and some of life’s greatest discoveries and inventions happened because of failure. Recognize what put caused your missteps and don’t let failure drown you. Let it motivate you to make the next day even more rewarding. You’ll get there eventually, but you can’t get there when you give up.
Stay motivated, stay focused, and work hard this New Year! Do you have any resolutions for 2017? If so, we’d love to hear about in the comments below!