It’s that time of year again – when we reflect on the past year and think about the year ahead. What do we want to accomplish? What are our goals for the following year? It’s easy to choose a goal – “I want to lose x amount of weight,” “I want to be a better wife” etc, but how do we keep these goals as the year goes on? There’s so much motivation come January; then February roles by then March and pretty soon your goal flies out the window. Here are my five tips for maintaining those New Year Resolutions as well as any goals really.
1. Choose a S.M.A.R.T. Goal
S.M.A.R.T. stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timely.
Specific:
Who? What? When? Where? Why? Make your goal specific, not vague. Don’t just say I want to lose weight or I want to exercise more, exactly what are you going to do? You can start with “I want to lose 10 pounds by exercising at my gym 3 days a week” for example.
Attainable:
How can you make your goal come true? Identify your goals that are important to you and see how you can make them come true. When you do this you start to develop a positive attitude and come up with the ability and skills to reach your goal. You can attain any goal you set your mind to, especially when you have a structured plan. So is this goal attainable? “If I put my mind to it and create a healthier lifestyle, I will be able to lose the weight – yes it’s attainable”
Realistic:
Is this goal realistic for you? Is this goal something you are both willing and able to work towards? Only YOU can decide this. Your goal should represent substantial progress. Your goal is realistic if you truly believe that you can do it. Have you accomplished anything similar to this goal in the past? What conditions do you need to have to accomplish this goal?
Timely:
What is your timeframe for you to accomplish this goal? If you want to lose 5 pounds, what is your timeframe? Someday won’t work. When there’s no timeframe tied to it, it won’t seem important to you or no sense of urgency. “I want to lose 10 pounds by Valentine’s Day,” then you’ve set your mind to that date and can work towards that goal.
T can also stand for Tangible: Can you experience it by either taste, touch, smell, sight or hearing? When your goal is tangible, you have a better chance of making it measurable and specific therefore attainable. Have you gone down a pant size?
2. Choose an accountability partner
There will be times when you don’t want to make your small changes towards your goal. You won’t “feel like” going to the gym after work. Who is going to keep you accountable to keep you going to the gym? Having a solid support system is so important for keeping your goals. Choose a friend or family member or even find a support system that is in alignment with your goal.
3. Review your motivation
What is your motivation to keep going? You’ve come up with your SMART goal, but what is the root for this goal – is it to fit in your wedding dress? To run around with your children without running out of breath so fast? What is your purpose for keeping this goal?
4. Make small steps now
All changes start with small steps. Start making a habit now, before the New Year actually starts. Habits take months to years to develop, your new goal won’t happen overnight, start with baby steps
5. Persevere through the Bumps in the road
Understand that there will be bumps in the road. How will you go about that? Things will come up that will prevent you from staying on track, how are you going to bring yourself back on track?
My New Year’s Resolution
Personally, my goal is to start going zero waste. I’d like to start recycling more, composting, and minimizing my waste. I’m going to make small incremental SMART goals that I hope to make a habit before moving onto my next goal. My first goal is to start taking cloth bags to the grocery store and start composting. How am I going to attain this goal? I bought a composting bin that I will keep in the kitchen so it’s in sight and I am reminded to throw my scraps there. I’ve also bought cloth produce bags that I will keep in my car as well as disposable poopie dog bags =P My time frame to make this a habit is 2 weeks although this will be an ongoing goal of mine.
My accountability partner are both my husband and my next door neighbor.
My motivation is knowing that change starts with myself and if I want to help protect this earth, which I believe we are called to do, it’s by making these small changes.
My small steps now before the New Year is to start bringing my own bags to the store.
When I face bumps in the road and I am in a position where I have to use plastic bags, I won’t get down on myself but rather live and learn and try to evaluate how I could’ve done something to change that situation in the future.
