Goal Setting for the New Year: Set Goals That Stick

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The new year is right around the corner which means family, celebration and most importantly, new year’s resolutions.

The energy of the new year provides us with a fresh slate to dream up and set goals towards the best versions of ourselves. From healthier eating and weight loss to new skills and better habits, there are an infinite number of possibilities for setting goals for the new year.

Everyone does well at the beginning of the new year, which is filled with motivation and determination, but as the year progresses, many find their resolutions have become a forgotten thought, collecting dust in the back of their minds until the next new year cycles back around.

If this is you, you’re definitely not alone, but you can do better and you know it.

The old way isn’t working anymore and you need something to help you stay on track with your resolutions. You need to set goals that stick and this post will show you how to do just that.

Be realistic

When you’re writing down your new year’s resolutions, it’s important to be realistic. Don’t make goals that you know are too farfetched for you to achieve. Instead, create goals that you feel are realistic for you to have.

If you’re goals are too crazy, you might find yourself feeling defeated when you face challenges and you may even give up altogether. To avoid this, be realistic with your goals so you know that you have the ability to get there.

Be specific

When you’re planning your resolutions, be specific with your goals. Have a large goal and narrow it down and pin point exactly what you want. For example, if you want to lose weight, don’t just say, “I want to lose Weight” be more specific. How much do you want to lose? How much do you want to weigh by the time the year is over? What steps are you going to take to get there?

If you have a large goal with no specifics, it’s easy to feel lost on how to achieve them. Being specific when creating your goals can help guide you on how to accomplish them.

Keep a journal

When you write down your goals, they feel more solid and attainable. Writing down your goals is also a great way to motivate you to keep going even when you don’t feel like it.

Grab a journal and a pen and write down your resolutions in detail. Then, create a plan with steps you can take to get there.

For example, if you’re trying to eat healthier, use a journal to keep track of what you’re eating and how you can start incorporating healthier foods into your diet.

By keeping a journal, you can keep track of where you are now and where you want to go. As you progress throughout the year, you’ll be able to look back at your journal and see all the progress you’ve made.

Create mini goals

A year is a long time, and while we may feel motivated at first, it’s easy to lose that motivation as time progresses. When it comes to goal setting for the new year, it’s helpful to create smaller goals to keep you motivated throughout the year.

For example, if your new year’s resolution is to learn a certain skill, create a plan to learn a little each day. If you’re learning an instrument, set monthly goals like learning a specific song for one month and learning to read music notation for another.

Celebrate your success

When you accomplish small goals, celebrate your success! Pat yourself on the back for sticking to your resolution even if it’s only for a month, a week or even a couple of days. Each day be proud of yourself for creating change in your life.

You can even add small rewards at the end. Treat yourself to something you enjoy doing, like going to the movies or out to your favorite restaurant. Have something to look forward to and motivate you to keep going.

Get someone to hold you accountable

If you find yourself having trouble sticking to your resolutions, it might be time to bring in a friend, family member or someone that can hold you accountable. When you share your resolutions with someone else, oftentimes you feel more motivated to achieve them.

Even better, if you can, get a friend to do your resolution with you so you can keep each other accountable and encourage one another to keep going. If your goal is to go to the gym, get a gym partner, if it’s to learn to cook better, get a cooking partner, and so on.

When you have someone to motivate you and hold you accountable, you’re more likely to achieve the goals you set for yourself and inspire others to do the same.

Habit Tracker

When it comes to goal setting, one of the best things you can do for yourself is to get a habit tracker. These trackers are a great way to, not only record your good habits, but your bad ones as well. When you identify the habits and actions that are holding you back, you can begin to shift them little by little in a more positive way.

By keeping track of your daily habits, you can identify your downfalls and take steps to avoid them.

This is also a great way to record your success and notice all the good habits you have implemented in your life.

Note: If you’re serious about creating good habits and sticking to your goals, here’s a gorgeous Habit Tracker that’s sure to help you out!

Get back up instead of giving up

When it comes to new year’s resolutions, it’s normal to fall off the wagon every once in a while. If you’re trying to eat healthier, you’re probably going to eat fast food at one point in the year, maybe cake for a birthday or celebration dinner, but just because you wander away from your goals doesn’t mean you have to stay away.

If you find yourself drifting away from your resolutions, that’s okay! Everyone does, but you’ve come so far and it would be such a shame to give up now. One misstep is nothing when compared to all the progress you’ve made towards your goals.

If you feel really unmotivated and feel like giving up, take a step back from your goals, take a break and come back when you are ready.

Keyword. Come back.

When the year is over, you’ll thank yourself for it.

Be your own cheerleader

It’s great to have a support system to lift you up when you’re down, but you shouldn’t rely on outside forces to keep you on your road to success.

When you feel unmotivated and defeated, take a break and tell yourself positive things. You should be your own biggest cheerleader, urging yourself to keep going. When you cultivate a supportive mindset and believe in yourself, you can make great strides towards achieving your goals.

If you find it difficult to tell yourself positive things, trying writing a letter to yourself as though you were writing it to someone else. If someone asked you for motivation to keep going, how would respond? You wouldn’t tell them to just give up and try again next year, would you? You would probably tell them to keep going and motivate them to stick to their resolutions. Keep this note tucked away for whenever you need it.

Find what works and stick to it

When you’re setting a new resolution, there are bound to be things that don’t work out.

Maybe you’re trying a specific diet and it just doesn’t feel good to you, or a workout routine that just doesn’t sit right. Take some time to experiment with different things and find the ones that work best for you.

Because everyone is different, what works for one person might not work for you, so rather than trying to force something to fit, find an alternate approach.

Have a role model

Role models are great when you’re starting a new goal. Find someone you look up to, who has the things you want, or who is sticking to their own resolutions and encourages you to do the same.

This can be anyone, from a widely known person to your mom or next-door neighbor. Just keep this person in mind when you feel like giving up. Just the thought of them can motivate you to keep going.

Set goals the SMART way

S.M.A.R.T. stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. This is a way to set your goals that will set you up for success and make it more likely for you to achieve them. They allow you to have a clear vision of your goals and help you to take the necessary steps to get there.

S- Specific

We’ve already covered this, but when it comes to goal setting, it’s important to be specific. Don’t throw out a large goal with no direction. Know where you’re going and you have a better chance at getting there.

M- Measurable

Measure your progress by tracking it. This way you’ll be able to see how far you’ve come and see if you have the ability to get where you want to go.

A- Achievable

Your goals need to be achievable. If they’re not, you’ll find yourself feeling unmotivated and sapped of determination. Set something you know you can achieve.

Take a look at your goals, are they achievable? If not, maybe take some time to break them down into smaller, bite sized, achievable chunks.

R- Relevant

Your goals should be something that align with you. Don’t go making goals that are just a passing desire. Make sure that the goals you are setting are something you really want, otherwise you may feel a lack of motivation and lose interest in them half way through.

T- Time-bound

When setting goals, you need a specific time frame in which you are planning to achieve them. If you don’t have a deadline, it’s easy to stray away from your goals.

By what date do you wish to achieve your goals? Plan milestones to keep you on track. You can even create a time table to help you stick to your deadlines.

If you’re interested in learning more about how to set S.M.A.R.T. goals, check out this great post on how to do just that!

Keep going

The last and final step to setting goals that stick is to keep going! It sounds easier than it is, especially when you feel like giving up, but remember why you started in the first place.

When you feel like giving up, go back to a time when you felt motivated to complete this goal. Why did you set this resolution in the first place? Think of how your life will look when you accomplish all you have set for yourself.

When the going gets tough, just know you’re tougher.

In the end…

The new year is one of the best times for setting goals and resolutions because you’re not alone.

All over the world people are planning to improve themselves and their lives. When you get together with other goal setters, you feel more motivated to achieve your own resolutions.

New year’s resolutions give you the opportunity to change your life for the better and become a completely different person than you were the year before.

When you feel like giving up your new year’s resolutions, just ask yourself, in a year from now, when the next new year comes around, will you be setting the same resolutions, or will you have already achieved them?

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