The Secret to Keeping Your Resolutions
According to a recent post on the New York Times Health blog, “Four out of five people who make New Year’s resolutions . . . will eventually break them.” Isn’t it amazing to think that 20% of the population actually succeed?
There’s something about the turning of the calendar that brings out the optimist in all of us. We imagine a world where we are healthier, wealthier, and happier and in a moment of bubbly, Champaign dreaming we resolve to change. Reality often finds us in the morning or at least by early February.
So what should we do with these shiny little wishes? Is there a way to take the spark of a New Year’s resolution and light a fire that lasts all year? The experts seem to think there is.
In the same NYT blog post, author Tara Parker-Pope quotes a FranklinCovey survey writing, “[E]xperts say the real problem is that people make the wrong resolutions. The typical resolution often reflects a general desire, rather than a specific goal.”
Reading that, it makes a lot of sense. For several years I stopped making resolutions altogether because failure seemed inevitable. But if you set the right goal, a specific goal, surprising things are possible.
A few years ago I decided to take part in the Vancouver Sun Run, a huge task for this non-athlete. I remember thinking, “This is crazy.” The race organizers put together a 12-week training program so I grabbed a friend and a pair of running shoes and off we went. Even up to the day of the race I saw failure looming. I thought, "This isn’t going to work. It’s 10K. I can’t do this.” I was completely surprise when I crossed the finish line. Ten kilometers feels like a long way, but broken up over 12 weeks the training was doable. And I must say, that finish line felt FANTASTIC.
If you’re already feeling the strain of your New Year’s resolution, this might be the answer you’re looking for. Consider refining your resolution into a specific, tangible and realistic goal. Be encouraged. Change takes time but I can say from experience, it can happen. Celebrate the victories along the way and take the next step towards your goal. I’m still working on this year’s resolution too.
How do you feel about your New Year’s resolutions? What are you doing to encourage yourself on to the finish line?
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Isn’t it wonderful to have so much hope in the New Year?
So, we’ve reached a New Year. And there’s so much to expect. We’ll not be making the same mistakes, we’ll try to do everything we left pending in the past year, we’ll visit those who we somehow forgot to see and we will definitely not suffer for silly things. Let’s cry less and laugh more. Start that diet we did not start. Make up with those with whom we have not spoken for a long time (as for me, forget it…but ok! do not take me as an example. I’m a bad one, believe me!!!) Take that course we’d been postponing. Join a fitness center. Redecorate our place. Get a new job. Travel somewhere different. Whatever! I guess planning something fills us with new energy and that feeling has always fascinated me! I have made lists for the past 10 years and actually checked them in the end of the year. This year, I planned to start a blog, after having been incentived by my great friend, AP. Here I am. Making one of my 2008 resolutions become true. Wonderful! Those who know me understand I need no encouragement to feel confident. so here I am: Congratulations…to myself! I dedicate my first page to AP, for her support and constant ‘You must do it!’ I hope it will be good for me and will keep my friends amused…after all, I have lots of stories to tell!!!
I was successful at keeping 2 out of the 9 I made last year, which I thought was not bad…certainly better than none! I’ve found that if I make my resolutions public (to friends or family) it’s easier to be held accountable to achieve them.
Mine will.
“I will only have one New Years Resolution.”