January is a great time to stand back and take stock of your life to see how you can make some positive changes. It's a common theme you will hear as most people are motivated to take action at this time of year. The ironic thing is that New Year's resolutions are usually forgotten by February - probably because the resolution was more of a wish than a goal.
If you really want to make significant change in your life, the key to accomplishing resolutions is to begin by making sure that you have a burning desire to accomplish your resolution and a commitment to seeing the process through to making your goals a reality.
"Your ability to discipline yourself to set clear goals for yourself and then to work toward them every day will do more to guarantee your success than any other single factor."
- Brian Tracy
Decide what you really want -
Before setting goals, you may want to ponder a few questions in order to gain clarity about what it is that you really want to accomplish:
- What is currently working in my life?
- What is not working?
- What do I really want to change and improve?
- How will my life change once I accomplish my goal(s)?
Create a SMART goal -
Some brilliant person in the business management world created the SMART goal acronym years ago - it's a great tool that will help you to focus and follow through on your goals:
S - Specific - What is your goal? What do you really want?
Spell out the target you are aiming for very precisely and be sure to write it down.
M - Measurable - How will you know when you've done it?
State your goal in such a way that you can measure exactly when you have arrived as well as how far along you are at any specific moment.
A - Achievable - Is it physically possible to accomplish your goal within whatever limits you must consider?
R - Reasonable - Do you have the time, resources, etc. to accomplish your goal? Can it be accomplished within the specified time and with the resources you have available?
T - Time Oriented - By when will you reach this goal?
The most important steps to take are to decide exactly what you want, write it down, and then set a deadline to reach your goal.
Take small steps consistently to see results -
In one of my favorite books, "What Happy People Know,"psychologist Dan Baker points out that if you truly want to be happy in your life, you need to work on the following three areas of your life on a daily basis: your health, relationships, and career.
The typical New Year's Resolution usually involves goals around losing weight or making more money. However, if you truly want to improve your life and make lasting positive change, the easiest way to do so is to simply do small things consistently in these three areas on a daily basis - that will make the most significant impact on your life in the long run.
For example, to improve your health you may decide to get a minimum of 7 hours of sleep every night, eat more wholesome, healthy foods, avoid processed foods, and take a 30- minute walk daily. Voila! Better health!
To improve your relationships, you may decide to spend more time with loved ones (and to be fully present when you do), improve communication with others by listening intently, and to expand your networks by looking for opportunities to connect with others.
And, if you want to improve your career -
The best advice would be to find work that you love. As Dr. Baker states in his book:
"Loving your job is the ultimate freedom. It means, in effect, that you never have to work - you just play hard and collect your check. You can't beat that for leisure."
A final word -
If you really want to achieve anything worthwhile by the end of the year, the perfect time to start is NOW.
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