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How To Keep New Years Resolutions: 5 Goal Setting Tips

“What am I doing? Where am I going?

There’s got to be more to life than this!….”

New Years resolutions spring up from our attempts to answer such tricky questions.

I won’t pretend to know the answers, but I can share 5 goal setting tips on how to keep New Years resolutions. After all, the quickest New Years resolutions to be broken are usually quickly formed, poorly thought out goals.

Goal Setting Tip 1 - Once a year is enough, thanks!

It’s healthy to ask big questions about where your life is going, but ask them too often and you’ll end up in a bog of directionless despair. Take the pressure off, and only ask the big questions once, or at most, twice a year.

Goal Setting Tip 2 - 7 is the magic number

George Miller, a 1950’s psychologist, proposed that we can only deal with 7 bits of information at any one time. Any more information and we need to group things into more memorable, manageable chunks. So when you create your New Year master plan, keep goals down to a manageable number and group similar areas.

Goal Setting Tip 3 - I say tomayto, you say tomaato - let’s call the whole thing off!

A common mistake when setting goals, is in-sufficient detail. This can cause problems when we need to articulate these goals to work mates, life partners or even to ourselves. As an example of why this is important when goal setting, think of a house.

I have a particular house in mind, which is probably entirely different to the house you’re picturing. Is your house made of brick or wood? How many rooms does your house have?

Is your house full of people or are you the sole resident? Imagine the arguments if we had the joint goal of buying a house together!

Keep New Years resolutions by writing your goals in enough detail for everyone to understand and agree what’s meant. So if your goal is to buy a house, put some flesh on the bones by saying your goal is to buy a 3 bedroom house, with garden, near work, for no more than 3 times your salary.

Goal Setting Tip 4 - Keep it real!

You are more likely to achieve realistic goals. That’s not to say you can’t shoot for the stars and pursue your dreams; break up your mega goal into smaller, more manageable mini goals, and you’re more likely to achieve your dream.

Goal Setting Tip 5 - Fantastic fibbing

Here’s an unusual game to play. Start a conversation with a friend, family member or hijack someone from the street. Tell them they are going to help get your life on track, and all they have to do is ask a few choice questions.

Start to tell them the story of, for example, your New Years resolution to find and start your dream job. Tell them what it’s like in the studio or office, the people you work with and meet as part of your job, what your daily schedule looks like. Get them to ask you questions about how you got there e.g. how did you get the interview, who spotted your business card, etc.

This is where you will be put on the spot and have to come up with plausible answers. Aim to “keep it real” with your answers, e.g. don’t rely on winning the lottery to fund your plans! Keep this conversation going as long as possible, with as much detail as you can muster.

This might sound like complete madness, telling fantastic fibs or untruths about how you achieved you New Years resolution. The truth is that the questions they ask will forge links in your mind, creating a map that make it easier for you to achieve your long term goal. Just make sure you write down the steps you took to achieve your goal!

Fail to Plan, Plan to Fail

I hope these 5 goal setting tips show you how to keep New Years resolutions and achieve your goals. Follow this link for a more detailed goal setting guide, including examples and templates to ensure you achieve your goals.

By Lyndsay Swinton

It is said that every cloud has a silver lining and that there’s always light at the end of the tunnel. Why should we wait to get to the end of the tunnel before we see the light?

We should always live with the BELIEF that there’s light all around us, and not just at the end of the tunnel. The best time to realize this fact is during any festive period, and I personally feel that all festivals are the best period of hopes.

Many households take pains to save that little extra so that they can splurge on a decent celebration. Buying new clothes for the kids gives parents immense pleasure because they can see the joy on the little faces. Isn’t that what we all hope to see on children’s faces - the bright, beaming smiles stemming from genuine love and gratitude?

The whole family takes great pride in sprucing up the house for the occasion. New curtains are hung with matching cushion covers, vases are filled with flowers, carpets are beaten and washed, new table cloths are bought and in some cases the house is given a new coat of paint.

When the children are happy, the family scene automatically brightens up. The family is able to set aside whatever difficulties they may be facing, for that one day at least, and get into the celebrative mood.

Even in the poorest corners of the world, we get to see images of semi naked, street children celebrating Christmas with sparkles in their hands and the biggest of smiles. That to me is hope.

Hope that not all is doom and gloom. There is much hope out there and much to hope for as well. If we focused our energies into obtaining a better quality of life there’s no reason why we shouldn’t achieve it.

I believe this is why we lit the lights for just about any festival. The light itself acts as a symbol of hope for better things to come. It is believed that light empowers us to commit ourselves to good deeds.

How we celebrate festivals may differ in many ways, but what remains true and constant is that festivals are the celebration of life, its enjoyment and goodness.

Merry Christmas To You…..and all……