How to Set Achievable New Year’s Resolutions
New Year’s Eve 2019 is approaching quickly, which means that, if you haven’t already, it’s time to starting thinking about your resolutions! New Year’s resolutions have a bit of a stigma: you make them with high hopes for the new year to be your year, but, oftentimes, come the end of January, you’re already burnt out and may even forsake your goals. This isn’t because you lack self-will, however! It’s a common occurrence because, when setting New Year’s resolutions, people often forget that setting realistic goals is the most important part. If you’re looking for some help sticking with your resolutions this year, here are some tips for setting realistic, achievable goals.
Set Smaller Resolutions
One of the most popular resolutions is to lose weight to be healthier. While that’s a great goal, most people go a little overboard. Healthy weight loss involves losing 1-2 pounds per week, so setting a goal to lose 50 pounds in two months isn’t just unreasonable and too hard on yourself, it’s unhealthy. Instead, set smaller goals. Sticking to the same example of weight loss, instead of aiming to lose 50 pounds in two months, aim for anywhere between 8 and 16. This is a healthy, reasonable goal that you will find is much easier to achieve - and achievement only fuels motivation to keep on succeeding.
Be Specific When Setting Your Goals
Common resolutions include ‘lose weight’ or ‘save money’ or even ‘make more ‘me’ time’. However, while these are good resolutions, they lack the specificity that makes them achievable. Instead of setting your goal as to simply ‘save money’, set your goal as ‘save $30 a week’ or ‘save $650 this year’. By giving a specific number to your goal, you’ll be able to map out your milestones and celebrate your small successes as you go.
Map Out Your Milestones
When most people set their goals, they do just that - set their goals. However, achieving your success is more than just reaching a certain area; it’s a journey with multiple milestones.
Create a List of Reasons for Your Resolution
One of the best ways to prevent burnout is by remembering why you’re doing what you’re doing. When you’re sitting down and creating your resolutions and mapping out your milestones, also create a list of reasons why you chose that resolution. If your goal is to lose weight, you can list things such as to be healthier or to feel better physically. If it involves saving money, consider the fact that you’ll have an emergency fund, buying gifts next December will be much easier, and you can take a vacation whenever you want. Whatever your goals and whatever your reasoning, remembering why you started this self-innovative journey will help you stay motivated.
- Tags: dreams, fitness, goals, lifestyle, motivation, new year's resolution, wellness
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