Congrats! The new year has begun, and an opportunity has opened for you to do those things you have been meaning to do, to better yourself, and to do the things that make you happy. It is traditional for us to default to resolutions that will define the rest of the year (or let’s be honest, the first few weeks), when we can instead set fulfilling and realistic goals for ourselves. Keep reading if you’re interested in learning how to create and execute those New Year’s goals!
The effort to be happier or to get more in shape shouldn’t be confined to the absolute time frame of one year. A resolution often makes our goals more difficult to stick with. By changing the concept from a resolution to a goal, we are able to create an ongoing desire to complete our objective.
One way to organize those goals is to make them SMART. And by that, I mean that those goals should be specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and done in your own timeframe. We all feel the most satisfied when our to-do list is checked off at the end of the day, so why not set ourselves up for success?
Our goals also don’t have to be so broad. Say you want to finish a book you’ve been reading by the end of the month. Sometimes that can be overwhelming, so it might be easier for you if you also set mini goals throughout the course of that month. For example, finish reading five chapters by the end of week one, and so on. Making goals and setting finish lines for yourself isn’t supposed to be challenging and scary, it is all for your success! So, make it easy for yourself.
One of the most commonly forgotten concepts surrounding the idea of New Year’s resolutions, is the game plan necessary for accomplishing those resolutions. When you have a goal, you need a plan to achieve that goal. This year, one of my goals is to run a half marathon in July. In order to do that, I created a weekly action plan. That plan starts small, with running just one mile a day, by the end I’ll be running 10!
It’s important to make our goals attainable, but it is also important to understand why we want to achieve those goals. Why do you want to get fit, why do you want to read a book every month, why do you want to practice mindfulness? Understanding your why, like we often do here at Schell Brothers, is what makes reaching those goals worth it in the end.
And remember, it doesn’t have to happen in one year! Keep moving past the next ball drop, and into your life with these amazing goals and achievements!
The new year is about fresh starts, and about continuing those good habits you established the year prior.
Here’s to 2020 and all that it has in store for you! We here at Schell Brothers support you and your goals and we wish you the best of luck!
