It’s January 22nd. Have you broken one of your New Year’s Resolutions yet? If not, good for you! If so, join the club. Statistics tell us that only 2% of people actually keep their resolutions. I’m betting it’s because they set too many far-reaching goals and not enough plans to follow them through.
There’s good new though, you don’t have to wait until January 1, 2013 to start over. You can do it right now!
Here are 5 tips to get you back on track:
1. Set a measurable goal. Many New Year’s resolutions are vague like “I want to eat healthy this year” or “I want to get in shape”. How do you measure such things? You can’t. Set a goal that you can monitor such as “I will complete the Inspiration to Fitness program” or “I will pack a healthy lunch every day for work.”
2. Make a plan. Saying “I want to run a marathon” is great, but without a plan it’s not going to happen. Whatever your goal is, you need to make a plan for how to achieve it. Start from the end goal and work backwards. What small steps are you going to have to take to get there? Grab a calendar, and get your plan on paper.
3. Be flexible. So you set a goal and something came up (like an injury or a sudden move), should you throw the goal out? No! Be flexible. Adapt the goal if you need to, but stick with it. You will be glad you did.
4. Don’t quit when you mess up. Yes, it’s the old “get back on the horse” advice, but it’s inevitable, you will fail at some point. Everybody does. It’s just what humans do. And when it happens, you can either throw in the towel or get back up again. But remember, you will never regret trying. You will regret quitting.
5. Discover your “why”. When the going gets tough (and it will), you will be tempted to give up on your goal unless you remember the reason that you set the goal in the first place. Discover your “why” and make a visual reminder of it. When you are tempted to falter, take a moment to remember the reason behind what you are doing. You can do this by making a vision board, posting a photo, or writing out your “why” and posting it somewhere that you will see it every day.
Have you stuck with your resolutions or goals? If so, leave us a tip on how you are doing it! If not, are you ready to get back on track?
BlogHer has 5 more tips to keeping resolutions. Make sure to go check it out and add your own tips.
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