How are your New Year’s resolutions going so far? If you are starting to falter a little or just need to make sure you’ve set yourself up for success, consider these simple ideas: Make it Meaningful Identify what achieving this resolution would really mean for you. What would be happening? How would you be feeling? How would others respond? Take a few minutes to write the answers to these questions. Then read your responses. When you’re losing steam, re-read them.
Break It Down If you set a big goal for 2014 that now seems overwhelming and unrealistic, think about how you can break it down into smaller chunks. Map out interim deadlines and specific actions to make it more manageable. For example, start with the parts of the goal you want to complete in the first three months of 2014.
Add Accountability Share what achieving this goal would really mean to you and report your progress on it to someone else who will motivate you when you might otherwise give up. Your accountability buddy can help you remember what’s really at stake for you and help you refocus.
Anticipate Obstacles Inevitably, something will pop up that affects your progress on your resolution. Anticipate the potential roadblocks and plan ahead for them. Identify the support you will need when you encounter them. It can be the difference between abandoning your goal or just making a slight course correction. This is one of the most-overlooked strategies, but one of the most important.
Take a few minutes to check in on your resolutions and make any adjustments. Remember that even a big goal is achievable if you set yourself up for success.