Where are You with Your New Year's Resolution?

As we reach the 2nd month of this brand New Year, it is time to check in with ourselves on the progress of our New Year’s Resolution. Did you know that 92% of people will forget or stop their resolution by February 1st? As the ball drops on New Year’s people rush with excitement for an opportunity to make heart felt, life changes for the year ahead. Unfortunately as the New Year starts so does life again. Once the excitement dwindles down, people find themselves in the same life and same comfort zone with the same programmed beliefs about themselves and their life and don’t know how to push through to achieving their Resolution.

Below are reasons why most resolutions don’t work out and how they can.

Unrealistic resolutions with no plan

Most of the time when we are swept up in the excitement of New Year’s we make unrealistic and extreme resolutions. For example if someone wants to lose weight, they make their resolution to lose 50 pounds but have no plan to back that up. Every milestone starts with a single step and a step after that and a step after that. Focus your intention on those steps first. It could be first dedicating a 15 minute walk after work every day or cutting out certain foods. It’s great to know your destination when you are driving but remember you only can see a couple of feet ahead of you. Put your attention on the realistic achievements you can make in your day to start with, don’t worry about the year ahead. As long as you are going in the direction of your goal, you will get there. Set goals that work with your life and the transition will be much smoother and a lot more enjoyable.

It’s Hard to Stay Committed to Something New

The hardest thing about keeping resolutions is staying committed to them. The reason for this is because we are creatures of habit. We are used to our comfort zone and unless we are extremely dedicated, people have a tendency to forget about the resolutions they made. They slip into auto-pilot and stay in their comfort zone. When people grow used to to doing something for a long time, it’s hard to change it in one go. Realistically, it takes about 30 days of regular practice to inculcate a new habit. So be gentle with yourself and take it one day at a time.

Goals are not visibly in front

Our minds work with images. The more our minds see an image the more emotion we give it. One thing that a person can do to help make permanent change is to use a vision board. For years Vision boards have been a wonderful visualizing tool to help people concentrate and envision their goals. They can also be used to help keep track of the progress made. The traditional way of Vision boards can be made out of craft supplies like a cardboard, multiple magazines and some markers or one can even download a virtual vision board app. Downloading an app is a great way to keep your goals with you wherever you go. Another benefit of Vision Board apps is most of them offer a daily notifications feature which helps to keep your goals on the front burner and not forgotten. Repetition is absolutely crucial for any lifelong changes.

No Support System

Talking about your resolutions helps you to stay focused on them. The reason being, when you talk about life changes with people, they usually expect you to stick with those changes. It is also helpful to get some support in your effort to make change, like empowering groups. Telling your close friends about it too should also bestow on you a certain level of responsibility towards managing and achieving these goals. However if you feel, you would rather do this goal yourself, that’s fine too. Remember, only share your Goals and Dreams with ones that will support you and lift you up during this process.

Feeling of Failure

Here is another great resolution tip. Yesterday is History, just focus on your NOW. Now that you have some tips on how you can stick to your resolution, why not give it another try? Be kind to yourself and realise that you are an amazing powerful soul who is capable of anything. With the right mind set, having a plan and the right tools, you can achieve everything you desire. There’s no need to be hard on yourself, love yourself more and take that first step again.

Stick to the process of making one change at a time, one step at a time. Don’t forget about the use of creating a goal board to achieve your efforts. All the above mentioned tips will surely help you to make your Goals and Dreams a priority and let you see that there is always NOW to start over again, this time much more prepared.