I’ll be honest; I don’t think setting a New Year’s resolution is a good idea. There are two ways you can look at it. One, it creates all this pressure and expectation to follow through and achieve your resolution, which can be overwhelming. Two, setting a resolution can be so common that you don’t give it the attention that it needs. Either way, rarely do people achieve the resolutions they set.

Don’t get me wrong, I want everyone to set goals for themselves and achieve their wildest dreams, I just don’t think the New Year’s resolution is necessarily the best way to go about it. I think the premise is right, but the execution is wrong. The idea of starting fresh in the New Year sounds good, but I have one question. Why don’t you change right now? I think that the idea of a New Year’s resolution allows people to procrastinate and avoid making a commitment to changing their bad habits. Instead of taking accountability today, they can look to the future to start. There is only one problem with that, the only time that matters in life is right now. Instead of setting a resolution to get in shape, make a resolution to change the way you think and make your life the best that it can be.

Every year millions of people create a New Year’s resolution to get in shape, quit smoking, work less, or even work more only to abandon the idea within the first few weeks. In the gym industry managers love the New Year. Gyms are guaranteed to make thousands of dollars on new memberships and personal training. By signing people up for long-term contracts the gyms could care less if you show up again and people rarely do. The majority of the people who join a gym after the first of the year stop going within two to three weeks. There is a build up of energy leading up to the New Year and people either burn out or lose interest very quickly. Oh well, maybe next year.

That mentality needs to stop. You can achieve your resolution this time. It just involves changing your approach. Most people create their resolutions completely on impulse without much thought. Losing weight sure sounds like a good idea. That is where the problem starts. It is crucial that you create a concrete goal and a plan to accomplish it. Now is the time to start planning your approach to achieving this year’s resolution.

The first step is to sit down and spend some time thinking about what you want to achieve. My recommendation is to sit at a computer or grab a pen and paper and write non-stop for two minutes about what you want to achieve this coming year. Just let the random thoughts and ideas flow and record them on the computer or on paper. Don’t feel the need to organize the thoughts right now.

After the two minutes is up read over what you have written and try to create categories for your thoughts. Maybe you have fitness goals or business goals or things to accomplish with your family. Spend two minutes creating categories and then organizing your ideas into the different categories. Some category ideas are fitness, business, spirituality, family, or anything else that comes to mind.

Now that you have begun to organize your ideas it’s time to prioritize the importance of each of your thoughts. If you only have one goal or resolution, that’s easy. Otherwise spend some time numbering your ideas with one being the most important. After you have numbered your goals I would recommend picking the top two from each category and writing them together on a separate sheet of paper. You can create problems for yourself by having too many goals that you want to achieve at one time. The process and likelihood of achieving everything can seem overwhelming, leading to loss of motivation. Again if you only have one resolution you have more focus to devote to it.

Now that you have your list is narrowed done it’s time to start the planning process. Let’s assume your goal is to lose weight. The first step is to quantify the amount of weight you want to lose or some way of knowing you achieved your goal. This creates a benchmark for you to measure your progress. Again write down your final goal so you can refer back to it.

Once you have quantified your goal, it is important to establish a time line to achieve your goal. This is another area where loss of motivation can take place. Without creating a realistic time line it is easy to get discouraged and quit. Let’s imagine you have a birthday in July that you want to lose the weight for. Whatever the reasoning you use is fine, just make sure it’s realistic. That gives you seven months to reach your goal. In seven months the human body could realistically lose 28 pounds of body fat, if there is that much body fat to lose while remaining healthy. Maybe you wanted to lose 15 pounds, which falls within the possible range so you are on the right track.

After creating the time frame you need to create a way of achieving your goal, yet again being realistic. I would recommend getting a journal or daily planner to write this stuff done so you can track your progress and plan the daily, weekly, and monthly requirements to reach your goal. Try working out three days a week for the first month with a goal of losing two pounds, the next month plan to exercise four times a week with a goal of losing three pounds. I recommend planning a month in advance, so you are more likely to stay committed. If you plan week to week your thoughts and emotions can create distractions.

Once you have planned your approach to achieving your resolution it is just a matter of completing what you have planned. I suggest having a day once a month to track your progress to make sure you are on track. If you are, great keep doing what you have been doing. If not, relax and reevaluate what you have been doing and ways you can improve. If you honestly go through the entire process you should be able to achieve any goal.

The problem with most resolutions is that they lack structure. By planning and most importantly writing it all down you are creating something to be accountable to. It is easy to create excuses when you haven’t made much of a commitment except for a passing comment. When you take the time to plan out your resolution you create a much greater commitment leading to greater success. This may seem like a trivial exercise, but I promise it works if you are willing to give an honest effort and follow through with the plan.

You are capable of achieving anything that you dream of. It is just a matter of establishing the means to achieve it. Don’t let this year be another year of disappoint. Decide that you are willing to take the necessary steps towards accomplishing your resolutions, goals, and dreams. A little effort at the beginning will create dramatic results near the end. Good luck.

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