In the new year scrap the resolutions and go for real goals and real results.

By the end of December most of us are beginning to think about making resolutions for the new year. Each and every year these well thought out resolutions are declared proudly and create a new sense of lightheartedness as the anticipation for a new and more improved life is ahead. Within 4 weeks this feeling begins to fade and the lightheartedness turns to discouragement.
Within 8 weeks you may still be hanging in there but you realize that this resolution may not have been thought out to the end. By 3 months most people have long forgotten what they had resolved to do and have picked up their old habits.
So what is the point of it all then? Why create resolutions each year when they never really result in life changing habits? I propose that this year we do something different. This year we make a conscious choice to s rap the resolutions and devote the year ahead to create lasting goals that are achievable and life changing on their own.
Resolutions are often reoccurring goals that we have set many times before such as quitting smoking, getting in shape or being happier, getting organized but there is often little or no thought or planning other than a few fleeting thoughts of trying a new diet, getting through the first few smokeless weeks with nicotine gum or doing more things that make us happy.
All of these resolutions are long term goals that require a mindset change and commitment. They all require lifestyle changes and or a new thought process to make them work. Perhaps it’s time to have a new strategy. One where your goals are more heart centered. Where they are deeper, more profound and more down to earth.
To create goals like that you need to first know what you want in life. Where you really want to be one year from now. You need to be clear on the why, the how and the what. So changing our short-term wants into real goals will take some thought and planning.
I think we have been approaching our goals the wrong way. We are addressing the symptom and not the cause. Take a moment to think about what you would like to happen in your life. Assume you have already accomplished all of your previous resolutions.
What would you want if you did not have to worry about all of the yearly promises because they were out of the picture? If you were already thin, fit, a nonsmoker, happier, more organized and had more time with friends and family what goals would you have for yourself?
What are the life goals you have that past failed resolutions have been holding you back from achieving? Travel more? Run a marathon? Learn salsa? Buy a new wardrobe? Meditate more?
Take a few minutes to imagine yourself as if you had achieved all of your past resolutions. What goals would you want to accomplish now? Choose 1-3 goals that you would like to work on and use the following simple tips and tricks to help you to accomplish them in 2013.
#1 – Make sure your goals are SMART goals. That means that they need to be specific, for example I will run 10 KM in the half marathon for cancer support in June 2013 or I will invest in 3 companies by the end of 2013. The goals need to be measurable. This means you need to be absolutely clear on when you have accomplished them. They need to be attainable and reasonable or else you are setting yourself up for failure and they need to be time set, or have a specific date in which you will have accomplished them. ( try not to think further than one year here)
#2 – Once you have determined that your goals are smart check to make sure they are a bit of a stretch, you want them to be challenging otherwise what is the point. Create a reward system for yourself so that you can have specific rewards for milestones, consistency and determination. Each week you give yourself a little treat, each month you take yourself out to dinner at the end you will have a big party. By all means plan the party now and invite your friends letting them know what you will have accomplished. This way you have a firm commitment to achieving the goal.
#3 Write your goals down as if you have already achieved them and put them in a prominent place where you will see them each day.
#5 – Believe in yourself, visualize yourself achieving your goals, visualize yourself as the person that has already achieved all of the goals. Feel the feeling of accomplishment and feel grateful for your success. Do this each day, it takes minutes and can be done anywhere.
#6 – Create milestones and plan backwards. Take your goal and the deadline and divide it in half. Where do you need to be when you are half way there. Write it down. Now do that for both the first and last half. Now you should know what success looks like at 25% 50% 75% and 100%. Make sure you have those milestones clearly set in your mind. This way you can plan your daily activities to help you reach your smaller goals. You may even want to break each quarter down
# 7 – Take action. Each day do three things that will get your closer to your goal. If you have 3 goals and are very motivated by all means do 3 things for each goal but remember not to take on too much, be SMART about the daily goals. Write these 3 things down before you go to bed at night and quickly visualize yourself completing them. If you do 3 things each and every day to get you closer to your goal you will reach it.