So…now that we’re one month into the new year, how are those resolutions working out for you? I ask because statistically this is about the time that people start to give up on making those big changes. All those promises of change turn into feelings of guilt because you quit (once again) on your New Year’s resolutions.
For whatever reason, you abandoned all the good things you intended to do. Maybe it was harder than you thought (probably). Maybe life got in the way of making that change (very likely). Maybe you miscalculated the willpower required to stick to it (perhaps, but you’ve got more than you give yourself credit for).
THE reason doesn’t matter (because I know you can come up with dozens of compelling reasons to let yourself off the hook). What matters is that at the beginning of the year, you decided to make a change. Big or small, you sat down and decided to do something and now, you’ve given up.
Don’t.
Don’t let THIS be another year that you let slip by before deciding to make the same change again (next year). Don’t turn tiny setbacks into an excuse to fail. Don’t give up on the idea of creating a better you (whether that be a tidier, healthier, or just plain happier you). Don’t give up.
If it was worth deciding to do something about, it’s worth the effort it takes to stick to it. Whatever happened (or didn’t happen) in the month of January doesn’t matter. Clear the slate and start fresh TODAY by renewing your resolutions (or coming up with new ones that you know you can stick with).
Good. If you’re still with me to this point, let’s talk about how to make those changes stick.
#1: Start Each Day With Purpose — Don’t wait until midday to consider your resolution. Start each and every day with that goal in mind. Ask yourself, “What do I need to do TODAY to step closer to achieving my goal?” Put that on the top of your to-do list!
#2: Give Yourself Every Chance of Succeeding — Set yourself up for success before you have a chance to fail. For example, if your goal is to exercise more, get your workout gear ready the night before and set it out where you practically have to trip over it! Sleep in it if you have to, but do whatever you need to do to make it easy for yourself.
#3: Take It in Small Steps — Give yourself permission to take teeny tiny steps toward your goal. It doesn’t matter if you only achieve 1% of your goal today because there’s always tomorrow and the day after that and the day after that. Remember, the point is making a change that stays with you for a lifetime so achieving a small step at a time is okay (and well worth the effort).
#4: Celebrate Your Successes — Stop always focusing on the grand end goal. It’s easy to lose momentum when you feel like you still have such a long way to go, but instead of focusing on that, look at how far you’ve come! Tally up all those teeny tiny steps and celebrate! Yay you!
#5: Forgive Your Failures — Accept that you aren’t always going to have perfect days or perfect weeks. You’re going to revert back to old habits and maybe even take giant steps backwards, but don’t turn a stumble into a fall. Forgive yourself and renew your resolutions and carry on. Remember, change is worth it.