How to stick to your New Year Resolutions
Making a big fancy list of resolutions, while you’re still merry & bright, with a glass of bubbly in one hand & a pen in the other isn’t that hard, but actually following them through can be. We gathered 5 main things you should do in order to stick to your new year resolutions, maintain focus and enjoy awesome results.
The following tips are guaranteed to get you on the right track when it comes to keeping your new year goals, making you stick to your plans for a better year & a better you!
1Break it down
The most common New Year resolutions are the obvious ones: losing weight, getting in shape, eating healthier, giving up bad habits, saving money (you know Tello can help you with that), learning something new, meeting new people, etc.
No matter how big your 2018 dream is or its nature, the first thing to take you closer is to divide it into smaller parts, start small & break it down. Once you get started it will be easier to keep things going in that direction. This helps avoid stress and procrastination, making it seem more doable since you’re only thinking about one part.
2Announce your intentions
Over 100 separate studies in a wide range of experimental situations have come to the following conclusion: people who explicitly state when and where their new behaviors are going to happen are much more likely to stick to their goals.
If your example, you’re planning to give up cigarettes (YAY), it helps if you tell a friend about this decision, and the timeline you are going to put it into good practice. If you want to start exercising more, it will be best if you plan out your sport schedule, times & days when you’ll be hitting the gym, what classes are you signing up for and so on, and tell your support system.
3If you can see it, you can achieve it
The power of visualization is a real thing. If you see yourself reaping the benefits of achieving your goal, how much more you will gain from it, all the benefits & good things coming from it, it will be easier to stay motivated along the way. Atrribute as many positive emotions to it as possible and it will empower you further.
4Surround yourself with successful people
This is not an open invite to one of Bill Gates’ parties. Although it would be nice to have such a stellar crew, we’re talking about spending your time with people who already mastered your goal. It’s just common sense if you think about it. If you decide to quit smoking, going out all the times, with the same friends that are partying hard, might not help with your resolution. Instead, finding friends with whom you can hang out, spend time outdoors, pick up other hobbies together, might do the trick.
If you decided to work out, befriend a fellow colleague, that is taking the same class or is interested in the same activity. A training buddy should not be underrated. If you go alone every morning, you might skip a few classes, but knowing your friend is waiting for you to train together, will get you out of bed faster!
Whatever you choose, try to find people who are already doing it well and see how they manage it, what are the obstacles, how to overcome them. Learn from everyone you meet.
5Have a backup plan
Nowadays, with everything that is going on in your life and so many things to focus on, it’s very easy to become sidetracked when it comes to your target goals. Or you know, you just get lazy, or lose motivation after not seeing early results of your work. It happens to the best of us.
“People often say that motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing – that’s why we recommend it daily.” – Zig Ziglar. Key takeaway? You still have to push yourself to do the right things, and continue doing them until they become second nature.
Detours and procrastination mindsets can sneak up on you, that is why you have back up plans. Yes, plans, plural! If your schedule is changing and you no longer can go to the gym, try to replace it with another class, another gym even. Be open to replacing and not eliminating.
Plan ahead, anticipate and stay flexible in order to find different ways to reach your goals. If something seems to fail, go to plan B and so on. Know what your triggers or fallbacks are, and figure a way around them.
Knowing all this and what you want to achieve, go ahead, put pen to paper, write those goals down, make an action plan & stick to your New Year resolutions! Enjoy the benefits, brag about them & don’t forget to reward yourself along the way!
Leave a Reply
Want to join the discussion?Feel free to contribute!