A New Year A New You

Happy New Year! We survived another year and with every new year brings new beginnings.  What will you do in 2014? What are your New Years resolutions? Keeping a promise to yourself is always a difficult task and most of us pick such grand resolutions we almost set ourselves up for failure. We have good intensions but seem to fall short year after year. Why not break that trend this year and choose New Years resolutions you can actually keep. 

Every year we all tend to set the same goals, workout more, eat healthier, loose weight, save money, get a better job, etc. These are important goals so why do we tend to fall short year after year? The problem lies in the way we set these goals. Taking small steps to a larger goal is a much better approach than taking a giant leap to a giant goal. Make your goals small and you will be more likely to keep them. In the end all those small goals will add up to a giant resolution that you kept. 

So how can this be done? We'll, if your goal is to loose weight don't resolve to loose a set number of lbs or inches.  Instead, set a smaller goal like drinking 8 glasses of water a day and cutting out sugars and starches at least one day a week. Take the stairs instead of the elevator.  Go for a walk everyday at lunch or after dinner. If your goal is to get a better job, then make one networking connection each day or even each week. If your goal is to save money, cut out the coffe shop and cafe a few times a week. Bring your morning beverage and lunch instead.  Once you realize you can accomplish this goal, set another one, and then another.  All these goals will build on top of each other helping you to achieve your weight loss, money saving, career, and other personal goals. 

Today is the perfect time to start fresh and turn a new page. It's time to cut down on your bad habits and choose things in life that will help you grow physically, emotionally, socially, intellectually, and physchologicaly. I have a challenge for you this year, actually I have 5 of them. I am hoping each and every one of you will be able to tackle them. First, I want you to make one change to your behavior. Is there something you have been trying to accomplish but can't seem to get to the finish line no matter how hard you try? Instead of doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.  Change your behavior towards this thing that you are trying to accomplish. If you modify your behavior it may just be the kick in the butt you need to see this thing through. Secondly, I want you to make your goals public. If you tell everyone what you are setting out to accomplish it will give you the insentive you need to do it. Third, reward your small achievements. If your goal is to loose weight then do something nice for yourself in recognition of each lb you loose. Recognizing your accomplishments will keep you excited and focused on your goals. Fourth, I want you to keep a journal so you can track your progress. Write down everything you do towards reaching your goal. You will then be able to look back and see where you could have done something differently to achieve success or you can look back and mimic exactly what you did because you knew it would lead to success. Lastly, I want you to be easier on yourself. To err is human and making mistakes can actually strengthen the path you have set out for yourself. We learn from our mistakes, they teach us what we shouldn't do next time.  They teach us how to do things better  in the future so we are able to get back on track and continue down life's path. Take a tip from Jagger "you can't always get what you want, but if you try sometimes you just might find you get what you need."