I don’t believe in New Year resolutions. You only think about them and try during the first half of January. I mean really, who really says, in August, “oh, I can’t eat that, my resolution was to lose weight”. Even just the name implies that you’ll really only think about it around New Years.
Instead, I (and I encourage you to) set goals for the year. Each year, I write out 10-15 goals of things I would like to do or see happen during the upcoming year. The goals are often hung on the wall, somewhere visible, and a notice on my reminder calendar tells me to do a monthly review of the goals – am I working toward the goal? Does a goal need to be readjusted? Do I need to add something to my to-do list in order to reach my goal?
As far as setting the goals in the first place, I think of what I want to accomplish and I set a SMART goal. This means that the goal is Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely (or Tangible). Instead of setting the goal as “losing weight” (which isn’t specific, and questionably the others), the goal would be set as “weigh 145 lbs” – which is very specific, easily measured, can be attained realistically, and done in that one year time period (and it’s very tangible!).
This whole process ensures that my dreams, hopes, and plans don’t fall to the wayside as “I’d like to do that someday…”. Instead, I think of what those dreams are, and decide if I will do everything I can to make them happen this year, or if I will save them for another year! So, go ahead, set your goals for 2012! Think about your personal and professional lives, hobbies, personal wellness, dreams you’ve always had, and what you realistically want to see happen in 2012!
(my 2011 goals review to be posted soon – scrambling to meet a few of them in the last days of 2011! 2012 goals to be posted in first week of New Year)
jd - To Infinity & Beyond! 