Be concise and concrete! This means that to really have a resolution work it needs to be easily measured and tracked. So if you want to lose 20 pounds, just saying you want to lose it in the next three months isn’t going to do it. If instead, you state clearly that you will lose it by adding 30 minutes of daily exercise, and cutting out sugar and white flour products, and you will meet your ideal weight on March 30, 2007 at 9am, you are infinitely more likely to get there.
Keep it real and attainable! If you resolve to make $250,000 this year and last year you made less than $100,000 you may want to reexamine your goal. While it is by no means out of the question, it may be more realistic to plan to double your current income and create the plan and dates to do so. When I began in business in 1994, my income doubled every year for the first five years. This meant hard work, long hours, and dedication. It won’t happen without it.
Remind yourself daily! Write down your resolutions on index cards and read them aloud at least three times each morning and three times each night. This means you may want to also consider a reasonable number of resolutions. Consider no more than two in any specific life area: health and well being, career, relationships, travel and adventure, homemaking and entertaining, interior design (home and office), and personal image and style. A long list doesn’t make it easier to get done, it just makes it overwhelming.
Find an accountability partner! Share your sought after experiences and resolutions with a friend or co-worker. Agree to talk once a week and report on your progress, discuss roadblocks and get the support you need to stay on the path to success. Too often we allow ourselves to slide, but when someone else is holding us to our word, we stick to it more effectively.
Make the experience count! One of the biggest reasons I choose the word experience instead of goal is because when someone doesn’t achieve a goal they suffer a sense of failure and miss the point of what they experienced. We often learn more from the journey than reaching some destination. By framing your goals as experiences, it is always a win and you can focus on the path getting there rather than simply the brass ring at the end.
Make 2007 your year!
