Happy 2018! Before You Set Your New Year Resolutions, Plz Read This!

Happy 2018!  I know, it’s been over a year since launching this site that I’ve decided to add my first real post.

Chances are if you’re reading this, it’s not your first time setting New Year Resolutions.  And in the past, you’ve not always accomplished your resolutions.  I’m also willing to bet that if you were to track the success of your resolutions, you’ve failed more of them than you’ve accomplished.  In most modern cultures around the world, New Year’s marks a logical checkpoint when we all reevaluate our lives and set new goals going forward.  But before you go forward with your resolutions, I want to explore a few of my thoughts on this and goal setting in general first.

 

Only thing that matter is what you accomplish

 

Sounds simple, right?  But so many people set noble and lofty goals but never achieve them (you and I included!)  The truth is, setting goals doesn’t directly lead to accomplishments; you still need to do the hard work.  In fact, there’s even a school of thought of not setting goals and just focusing doing stuff!  Of course, I don’t recommend not setting goals either, but I think the author of that article also makes a valid point: if you want to accomplish something, you need to focus on doing, not just planning.

 

Your New Year’s Resolutions Should Have BOTH Goals AND New Habits

 

Have both new goals AND new habits for this year!  Goals should be long term visions of meaningful endeavors you’d like to accomplish by the end of the year, such as:

 

• Losing weight
• Making new friends
• Finding a new job or getting a raise
• Getting your finances in check

 

But merely thinking or even writing down any of the above won’t be sufficient.  You need to commit yourself to changing your behaviors as well including:

 

• Limiting sweets and junk foods to once a week (to lose weight)
• Going to the gym at least once a week (to lose weight)
• Talking to a new person every week (to make new friends)
• Applying to a new job every week (to find a new job)
• Investing 20% of your paycheck every month (to get your finances in check)

 

It’s very important to state a minimum frequency for the new behavior your want to add.  I prefer picking once a day, once a week, or once a month for ease of remembering rather than, say, twice a week or once every 10 days.  That way, you can also do a daily/weekly/monthly review at the end of the respective interval and check to see if you’ve gone through with your new behaviors.

 

Set “Cheat Days” for behaviors you want to remove.

 

Cheat days have been traditionally employed by dieters who need occasional relief whenever embarking on a new diet (say low carb, paleo, low fat, etc.)  They try to stick with the diet on most days but once a week or once a month, they’ll have a “cheat day” where they can indulge in anything they want (within reason.)  That way, the diet doesn’t burn themselves out.

 

You won’t likely quit most of your negative habits cold turkey so set “cheat days” or acceptable intervals that you’re allowed to lapse into the negative habit.  Instead of vowing to quit drinking, try allowing yourself to drink once a month, for example.  Or allow yourself to check Facebook once a day when you’re at work rather than stopping it altogether.

 

Summary

 

Don’t just set new goals this year; set new habits to take on and habits to remove.

For every new habit you want to start, set a minimum interval where you must perform that new habit: I’m gonna do X every [day/week/month/etc.]

For every habit you want to remove, set an interval for a “cheat day” where you’re allowed to lapse into the old habit: I will only do X at most once every [day/week/month].

 

Good luck!