How To Set New Years Resolutions

Happy end to 2014 and welcome 2015!

There is a phenomenon this time of year that always baffles and astounds me. With the ending of a year, people make resolutions for the new year. Great, in theory.

It always seems to me like people are making the same resolutions year after year. Make more money, lose more weight, spend more time with the family.

Year after year, I have seen people do this and year after year I have watched people not even come close to hitting their resolutions.

Resolutions are the biggest waste of time. I have written about them here, here and here.

The reason I hate resolutions so much is because they don’t get you anywhere you want to go. They are a thought in our society to make it appear like you want something in life, but you actually don’t want to put the work in to get it. That is why you make the same damn resolutions year after year.

Einstein

If you want to accomplish something in the new year, don’t make a single resolutions. Make goals. And make a plan to hit that goal.

You can’t say something like “spend more time with the family” or “lose weight” if you don’t have a tangible metric you can compare to. It is all an arbitrary goal at that point. You could lose a single pound and think “NAILED IT!” then go around touting the fact that you have hit your goal. And that is all fine and dandy if you are that person who post pictures of you in the gym to give the appearance of working out rather than actually sweating for something.

Don’t you want something more? Don’t you actually want to lose sustainable weight? Don’t you want to spend quality time with your family instead of just filling your time with family? Just saying some every day run-of-the-mill-it-is-ok-I-will-make-the-same-one-next-year resolution will get you there. And there is nothing. There is the same results from last year. Sound fun? Not to me…

Plus – new years resolutions are only for new years. People make them on the 31st as a last ditch effort to put some sort excuse on why the last year was not the year for them and how the next year will be different. Only to make it a month in and mentally give up, knowing you can go through the same bullshit the next year.

Goal setting is fine at the end of the year. I do it every single year. But unlike new year resolution, you can set goals throughout the year. You can adjust goals throughout the year. You are more likely to follow through on a goal because it is on going, not just a single year.

But you still can’t just make some random goal with no end in sight and blindly follow it thinking you are going to get somewhere. If you want to get somewhere and I just pointed and said “go that way” you may never get there.

goalsYour goals need to be part of your bigger plan. What in life do you want to accomplish and how can your goals RIGHT NOW get you there. Are you goals aligned with what you want to do in 5 years, 10 years, 20 years?

Here is how you set goals for the new year:

  • Find a goal. This isn’t to “lose weight” or “spend time with family”. This is “I will lose 35 pounds” or “I will not do any work between the hours of 6p and 830p and spend that time with my son”. This is your goal statement. Print it out – write it down – put it in a place where you will see it every single damn day and get it.
  • Create a plan to get there. What do you need to do to hit the goal. To lose 35 pounds, you may need to schedule time to work out 3x a week and start meal planning. TO spend more time with your son, you may need to schedule your day so the hours you are taking off can remain free and clear.
  • Create a timeline. Resolutions are given that it is a year. And you may want to set a year goal. But if you are in that mindset, I challenge you to cut 3 months off and make it a 9 month goal, just to get out of the “year” mindset. Make a goal timeline – 3 months, 6 months, etc. And proclaim it in your goal statement. “I will lose 35 pounds by June 1st 2015”.
  • Set Milestones. If you want to lose 35 pounds in 3 months, in a month and a half you should be half way there. Set a calendar reminder or a reminder on your phone for this date and check in with yourself. Like most, you get busy in life and will run around your goal – this puts you back on track.
  • HUSTLE. WORK. GRIND. Get busy doing your goal. Do a little bit every single day. Pick and scratch toward that goal like your life depends on it. Then – only then – will you accomplish it.
  • Evaluate. Resolutions seems to be all or nothing. Did you get? No? Do it again the next year. Goals are different. Goals you can evaluate how you are doing and adjust. Goal to large? Shrink it down. Goal to small and achieve to fast? Reset a bigger goal. If you keep resetting, you will get whatever you want.

I actually have an entire series of post dedicated to setting, achieving and exceeding your goals. Read them there: http://thefearlesshustle.com/category/goal-setting-series/

As you get the urge to post to the world on facebook your “resolutions” on new year eve and new years day, I challenge you to post a very specific, timeline driven goal of yours. Make it known that you are in it to win it in the next year.

One thought on “How To Set New Years Resolutions

  1. Pingback: Metric Driven Life | The Fearless Hustle

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