5 ways to make your New Years resolution stick!
It the time of the year again, where Christmas is just around the corner and just right after…comes the New Years celebration.
And as the year 2019 approaches, most of us would’ve had already reviewed what we had achieved this year.
Was 2018 good? Did I tick off all the things I said I was committed to complete on my New Years resolution list?
Aha!! Yes, New Year's resolution list!
I believe this is something most of us would be doing as the end of the year draws closer. Planning a new resolution for next year.
I have to confess, I was not a big fan of New Year's resolution. In fact, I think it’s most of the time just empty promises that we made to ourselves to feel good.
I did my resolutions list every year and for many years, I struggle tick off the things that I’ve committed my self to do (one of the hardest was to gain myself some six packs, which I fail until today)
So, why am I writing this?
Since I don’t like the idea of New Year's resolution why bother to write one at all right?
Well, that’s because I finally realise what was wrong in my planning. And the reason I fail is mainly caused by myself and no one else.
It was never about not having enough time, not having enough money, not having enough support and so on…
And when I got that figured out, for the first time in my life I was able to tick off most of the things off my resolution list. (8 out of 10) that’s pretty good. And I’m sure I will be able to tick off all of my 2019 resolution lists if I stick to these methods.
So here are some of the things we need to reprogram ourselves while setting a New Years resolution list.
#1 The first rule to plan a New Years resolution is to be REALISTIC!
Yes, you read it, BE REALISTIC. Too many times, we set our aims too high.
I was guilty of that too many times. For instance 2 years ago I told myself I would earn and save myself my first 100k.
Well that might sound possible to some of us, but it wasn’t for me (at least for that period of time)
My pay was not that promising 2 years back, and I had tons of student loan that I still need to pay off.
As I receive my paycheck every month, I got into depression as I realised that I could save much and I am so so so far away from achieving my goal.
And as 2018 closes that time, I began to feel more pressure, and I felt useless for not being able to achieve that things I set out for at the beginning of the year.
But this was all because I wasn’t realistic enough. So as you plan, be realistic and be know where you stand and is it achievable in a year time.
Which brings me to my next point…
#2 Start your goals small
If you want to make your year a fulfilling year. Set small goals.
I bet some of you might think, small goals are nothing… pfftt…
Yes, it might seem small, but small goals are easy goals, having them in your lists will help boost your morale in completing your checklist.
Ever heard of this phrase, “Celebrate the tiny victories.” You need to know how to set mini milestones and celebrate them as you progress through. This will keep you positive in completing the list.
And yes, you can definitely add in major goals into your 2019 list. For me, I had a 3:1 ratio on setting my list. Which means my mini goals are more than my major goals.
That way, I can keep myself motivated for finishing the small goals and keep my positive energy to achieve my major goals.
#3 Be smart in planning
One of the reasons we fail to get our goals done is due to the lack of planning.
Most of us would just list down what we want to achieve in the next year (Some of us would only say and never write anything down) and that’s it.
You need to do more than just writing down what you want to achieve.
You need a plan!
One good example I can give is my goal to travel and stay for one month in Sydney.
That was the goal I’ve set for myself this year.
The moment the goal was set I began to plan how much I need in order for me to achieve this goal. (The total cost of the trip)
Aside, from that, I need to have a realistic date set, so that I will not give up or freak out in the planning process.
I chose the month of July. And I began to work backwards in planning.
I break down the total trip cost into 6 months to identify how much I need to save per month.
With that set, I was able to save an amount aside every month for 6 months and I was able to tick off this goal.
Another example I bet everyone can relate to is weight loss.
For people that follow me on my Instagram, you would know that I am a workout enthusiast.
I’ve always strived to build up a muscular tone body. However I know realistically in order to do that, I need to give up on tons of food that I love. And I love cooking and eating good food, I was not ready to give up on that.
So, I went the extra mile to get advice from a bodybuilder on the realistic goal that I can hit if I these years if I still want to keep my eating hobby alive.
And through his advice, I was able to device a workout plan that suits my work schedule and doesn’t require me to go on an extreme diet.
The results are great, as of today, I was able to lose the weight that I’ve targeted and tone up my body as well.
It is VERY IMPORTANT that you know how to plan and execute your goals stages by stages to make it happen.
#4 You need to constantly keep yourself MOTIVATED
Do I feel like giving up on hitting my goals? OF COURSE I DO.
There are countless times that I threw out the white towel and told myself, “I’m done! I don’t care about these stupid resolutions, this stupid list that I need to check off!)
I didn’t tell myself that I need to be positive at that point. Instead, I allowed myself to break down, get emotional for a bit.
Then, only I told myself. Ok, you’ve whined enough already! Time to get back up and keep going.
To keep me from thinking negative things, I began to journal down my daily progress on completing my list. As I journal down, I read what I was feeling and told myself that these are temporal feelings, and it will not bring me down.
Aside from that, I spend time reading books that help increase my performance and kept me motivated.
2 books I highly recommend you to read is High Performance Habits by Brendon Burchard and also 5 am Club by Robin Sharma.
These books had kept me motivated throughout my journey in completing my New Years resolution list.
#5 Do enjoy the process
Please, please, please remember this… A New Years resolution list IS NOT a compulsory thing that you need to do.
This is just a way for some of us set and reach the goals we want to achieve over the year.
It is not an obligation. If you’re not a fan of setting this list, DON’T do it. This is not for everyone, some people prefer to go with the flow (like my wife) and they still live a happy fulfilled life every year.
However, if you’re someone that loves setting these resolutions. Do enjoy the process of ticking each goal of the list.
This is a process that should be enjoyed along the way.
And… that’s all. These 5 tips will keep your 2019 New Years resolution achievable and at the same time enjoyable.
I hope that this tips can help you as it had helped me so much this year and I know next year I will be able to tick off all goals that are set if keep to this guideline.
And I just want to take this opportunity to thank all my readers for constantly supporting me throughout the year on various platforms.
A MERRY CHRISTMAS to everyone and A HAPPY NEW YEAR as well. I’ll be back with more content next year. Cheers.
