Making This Year Your Best Year Yet
It’s February.
So…how are your resolutions going so far?
If you are like most people, you’ve made the same resolutions every year:
I am going lose weight.
I’m going to exercise more.
I’m going to make more money.
I’m going to save more money/ spend less money.
But, by many accounts, 80% or more of New Year’s resolutions fail by February.
I’m going to let you in on a few tips to help keep you regimented in your now-month-old New Year’s resolutions.
Tips to Making 2019 YOUR year
1) Learn from Your Mistakes and Past Experiences
We fall and fail for a reason: to learn lessons. Without lessons and without some type of pain or hardship—however mild–we do not grow. The key to experiencing the failures, however, is to learn from them. This means to correct our mistakes, and realize what we could have done better, and then apply those corrections.
Tons of people will make the same resolutions this year that they made last year. The SAME EXACT RESOLUTIONS! It didn’t work last year, so chances are it won’t work this year.
There is a saying I have always gone by:
If you do what you’ve always done, you will get what you’ve always gotten.
Therefore, if you do the same thing this year that you did last year to get you to your resolution, it is a good bet you won’t be successful in that resolution. So, if last year’s results weren’t the results you wanted, then you must take a different approach.
Reframe that resolution!
2) Think Bigger but Fewer
You might think that the smaller resolutions—the day-to-day ones that don’t mean that much– are the easier ones to keep but on the contrary. The bigger ones—the resolutions that carry greater weight and are more important—are actually the ones that most people are capable of keeping.
Why? Because those “big” ones are the ones that create intense desire, and without intense desire, you often won’t get to where you want to be.
I saw this quote the other day, in fact:
Your desire to change has to be greater than your desire to stay the same.
The “big” resolutions can create in you that desire to change.
And fewer. Yes, fewer. If you have 20 resolutions, you’re likely to get overwhelmed and there may be a good chance you don’t end up accomplishing any of them. My recommendation is that you keep your resolutions to five or fewer, so you can really put more intense focus on each one. More on that a little later.
3) Don’t Be Afraid
Learn to be comfortable being uncomfortable! If you are used to getting out of your comfort zone—because you force yourself to do it often—then eventually, it won’t scare you to do so. That means you must challenge yourself again and again to break out of your safety cocoon.
Many people are afraid of failing, and some are even afraid of succeeding! People can become frozen or even paralyzed by fear. Don’t be one of the many who ruins their life simply because of fear.
The reality is—and you’ve heard this before—people fear change.
But you’ve also heard this before: The only thing constant is change.
This means change is inevitable, so embrace it. If you can’t embrace, at least be open and accepting of the fact that change will happen, and there is a reason change NEEDS to happen.
Again, it is how we grow.
Don’t fear change; move towards it and attack it.
4) Focus and Get Specific!
It is my firm belief that the reason why people often fail at their resolutions is because they make so many of them (see number 2, above). All those resolutions become just a bunch of silly affirmations that never come to fruition.
You can’t “change everything” because essentially you will end up changing nothing. So, focus on a few small, yet important goals that you have.
Then, once you have focused on a few major goals, get specific. You need to sit down and map out a strategy. I highly recommend you take out a piece of paper and a pen, and write down specific, focused details of your resolution and then specific details about how you are going to achieve that resolution.
If you want to lose weight, for example, and you just say, “lose weight,” this will more than likely not get you to achieving your end goal. Instead of “lose weight,” for example, I suggest you write down what you specifically want:
Lose an inch around my waist and thighs; tone up by abdomen; lose 10 pounds and/or 3% body fat and go down one pants/dress size.
See how specific?
And then write your strategy map:
I will do this by weight training three times a week and performing cardio two times a week, by eating only whole grains (instead of processed grains)and lean protein, by reducing my sugar intake, and by drinking more water.
My point is that you need to put some serious thought into how you are going to get to your destination.
5) Then DO IT!
You have your specific goal/resolution.
You have a strategy map.
Now, be accountable to yourself, and take the action you need to take.
In the example above, with the resolution of “losing weight,” ensure that you make “an appointment” in your calendar for your workouts. Keep track of your water intake, your diet and exercise.
With any resolution, it’s helpful to keep a journal or a diary, and write down what is working and what is not working. Make the modifications you need to make because you put a lot of thought into this.
And this year, you’re going to achieve it, because your success is created by your own intense desire and action!
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Bill Yeager is an entrepreneur, leading mindset success coach, virtual online personal trainer, inspirational writer and health & wealth enthusiast. He’s helped over 500,000 people worldwide become inspired to transform their lives most widely known for becoming a Body-for-Life Champion & co-Author of Champions Body for Life. He is the author of several fitness articles, books and president of multiple companies.