The new year is a time of revival, refreshment, new beginnings and quite frankly, a renewed sense of motivation that may not last.
It brings the tradition of setting new goals, hoping to keep them throughout the year. But do we really want these goals, or is it the pressure of the holiday?
I’m not here saying that all New Year’s resolutions are pointless and that you cannot complete them. I’m simply highlighting the nonsensical ritual of realizing you need to eat healthier but deciding to give up in three months, just to continue the same cycle until the next year.
We build up all this pressure to start something that we thought about months earlier, so why didn’t we do it then? We are so used to pushing it off that on Jan. 2 we’re already second-guessing if we should continue to pursue the goal.
Like I said, I’m not speaking for everyone. If you have a successful history of New Year’s resolutions, then that works for you. But it never worked for me or most people I know.
So I’m not here to shame you about your relationship with the McDonald’s drive-through or your 3 a.m. Netflix binges, I’m here to help you create and maintain your goals efficiently.
- Focus on progress, not perfection.
The new year reminds me I need to change a couple of things about my lifestyle. I decided I wanted to give up soda and limit eating out to once a week. When I decided at the beginning of December that these were probably the two biggest things about my lifestyle that needed some help, I started then.
Life is full of setbacks, obstacles and failure, its normal and something you should be okay with. I know that quitting cold turkey is hard and sometimes unrealistic. You have to give yourself grace.
Start easy, take a week to monitor the repetition of the thing you want to see less of. Create a plan on how to gradually remove this from your life.
New Year’s resolutions create an unrealistic standard to start on the 1st and continue throughout the year without flaw, but that’s perfecting your goals when the reality is, most of us will see progress before perfection. This way you’re more likely to achieve and be happy with your results.
- Set one goal at a time.
Another unrealistic expectation of New Year’s goals is the thought that you can remove multiple weaknesses in your life all at once.
These things that you want to see less of could have may be big parts of who you are. Pushing unreal expectations on yourself is most likely going to demotivate you.
Make a list of the things you want to see less of and tackle them one at a time. When you start to see progress and completion with one goal, continue the habit while also drawing your focus to the next goal.
Creating momentum and transparency will reduce being overwhelmed!
- Pick something up rather than throwing something out.
Look at it as picking up something rather than cutting something out. This is proven to help you succeed.
For example, if you want to watch TV less, think of something that will fill the time you used to spend watching TV. Tell yourself when you want to watch a movie that you have to go on a run or read a book instead.
It’s not as easy for you to quit TV overall, so distract yourself with more healthy activities. This method successfully redirects your energy and time to more beneficial routines.
I’m not saying the motivation that the holiday brings should be ignored, but your perception should be changed. Core ideas behind the tradition are valuable and wanting to grow, better yourself, and put behind ugly habits is meaningful. Adapt to a realistic plan of how you can reach your goals. Be open to setbacks, reflection and obstacles because the reason why so many New Year’s Resolutions fail is because of the way they’re set.
