Setting Realistic Goals and Resolutions for The New Year

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So you’ve printed off your Looking Back and Looking Forward printable worksheet and its time to tally up your goals and achievements. Just how many of them did you accomplish? Did the weight loss program get tossed out the door after your second trip to the coffee shop? Perhaps you wanted to go back to school, but missed the deadline? You had good intentions on cleaning out the attic or basement, but it never happened? It seems like we’re set to fail on our new year’s resolutions before we’ve even begun…

Let’s begin 2016 by setting realistic goals and resolutions, with an aim to succeed. December 2016 can be different—You can look back and be pleased at all you’ve accomplished throughout the year.

8 Tips for Setting Realistic Goals and Resolutions:

1. Don’t set big goals. Almost no one can lose fifty pounds in one month, or earn a college certificate in only a year. Each goal begins with baby steps. Instead of focusing on the reward at the end, focus on that first step. The first step could be signing up for a yoga class, or dropping by your community college to pick up a program brochure. You’ve got to set realistic goals.

2. Buy a large Daytimer book, planner or calendar where you can write down your goals. The calendar on your smartphone is out of sight. Keep your calendar in a prominent position in your kitchen or bathroom. As you complete your tasks, cross them off. Yes, you went to two workouts this week, all your courses, and you visited the store for your new project. Crossing achievements off your list will give you a sense of accomplishment.

3. If you don’t know where to start, ask for help. Perhaps you want to find a new job in the new year. Start by asking friends and family about potential openings where they work. Now you’ve placed at least 5% of the work on someone else’s shoulders. If you need something for exercise or college, don’t be afraid to ask people if you can borrow an item or two.

4. Instead of telling yourself you will stop eating fatty and sugary foods, promise to do it for only two days a month. These are more realistic goals that you can actually do. Once you’ve had a couple of months of achieving these goals, you can increase the number of days.

5. If you fail, you’ll only be failing for one day, because you set yourself realistic goals. You ate cake on one of your healthy days, or you skipped your spin class. No problem—Get back into the program the following week.

6. Share your goals with friends and family. Many people share their goals on social media, or they start a blog. You can post regular updates. There is no better reward than your friends posting comments saying congratulations, even if all you did was go for a nighttime walk around the block instead of watching TV.

7. After you’ve achieved ten of your smaller goals, reward yourself with new yoga pants, by signing up for a new exercise class or purchasing something that will help you achieve your next round of goals.You’ll be proud that you counted the smaller goals and resolutions instead of just the big ones.
8. Write them down and then check them off! Find a Goal Setting Workbook that will help you organize and keep track of the things you want to accomplish.

What sort of goals are you setting this year? How are you making them realistic goals?