Happy New Year!
It’s January 2021. After all the chaos of 2020, the new year is a great opportunity to set new goals and resolutions.
However, for many of us, the process of setting goals can be overwhelming. You may know what you want, but have trouble putting that desire into action. Plus, when only 8% of people achieve their New Year’s Resolutions, it can be disheartening!
One of my favorite quotes is:
“Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve.”
Napoleon Hill
Most of us have no problem conceiving or visualizing our dream life. We may have a great idea of the career we want, the house we want, the type of partner we want, and even the lifestyle we want.
What holds us back is that we don’t know what steps to take to actually achieve our desires.
Here are my top tips and tricks for how to help you achieve your goals in the new year.
1. Choose a SMART goal.
Writing goals is an imposing task. You may know what areas of your life you want to improve, but it can be tough to put those ideas into words.
The SMART goal framework was created to help people write focused goals. Here is a breakdown of the framework:
Specific:
Make sure to be specific when writing your goal. Broad goals are often undefinable and difficult to pin down.
Let’s look at the following common New Year’s resolution: “Achieve more success in my career.” While that’s great, what does career success look like to you?
A better goal would be one of the following:
- Increase my annual sales by 15%
- Gain 10 new clients over the course of the next year.
- Increase total revenue by 10%.
If your goal is too broad, it will be difficult to know where to begin to make it a reality. Specific goals are much easier to bring to fruition.
Measurable:
Take a look at those 3 example goals I listed above. Besides being specific, what else do they have in common?
All 3 of my example goals are measurable.
You won’t be able to tell if you’re making progress if you can’t measure that progress. Set a baseline for comparison and then monitor your progress throughout your journey.
Attainable:
Make sure your goal is realistic.
I believe most goals are achievable within a reasonable timeframe. Of course, there are always exceptions.
Is your goal to become the Supreme Galactic Overlord of the Milky Way? Sorry, but that’s not going to happen within your lifetime. Actually, that’s probably not going to happen in your great-great-great-great grandchild’s lifetime.
Obviously, that example is a little extreme. It’s great to dream big, but important to use common sense when setting a goal to make sure you can realistically achieve it.
Relevant:
Is the goal something you actually want to achieve? Does it align with your personal values and beliefs? Are you willing to do the work to achieve the goal- i.e., are you willing to make the necessary lifestyle changes to ensure that your goal becomes reality?
This is an important consideration. One of the most common New Year’s Resolutions is to lose weight. While many people are successful (I personally lost 50 pounds in 2018!), others simply aren’t willing to change their diet or exercise to accomplish that goal.
If you aren’t willing to make the necessary sacrifices or lifestyle changes to accomplish a certain goal, that’s okay. All it means is that particular goal isn’t aligned with your lifestyle or core values. It’s time to pick a new goal that is.
Time-based:
Set a realistic “end date” for your goal. Will you be able to achieve your goal within the time frame you’ve set?
Maybe your goal is to become President of the United States. While that’s a great goal, there’s a lot to take into consideration before that can happen. Perhaps you’re in your late 20’s, have no prior political experience, and no resources or connections with which to fund your campaign.
It isn’t realistic to expect to become President within the next year. A more reasonable objective would be to become President within the next 25 years. That gives you plenty of time to gain experience, gather campaign funds, network, and reach the legal age requirement.
The smarter you are when choosing your goals, the easier they are to accomplish!
2. Write it down.
An important step in manifesting your goals is to write them down.
Writing down a goal makes it real! The process brings your goal out of your imagination and into the physical world, making you that much more likely to complete it.
A hidden benefit of writing down your goals is that it reinforces your memory. How often do you set a new goal for yourself but then forget to take action? Take it a step further: how often do you want to do something minor, but then get distracted and forget to actually do it? Writing is a great step to protect against forgetfulness or distraction.
To help keep yourself motivated, display your goals in a place you’ll often see them! One of my favorite motivational tricks is to write my current goals on a post-it note and put it on my mirror. That way, I’m reminded of my goal every morning and I feel inspired to give it my all.
3. Tell everyone.
Now that you’ve developed a clearly defined goal and manifested it by writing it down, it’s time to tell the world!
Gather your cheering section. The people you love want to see you succeed- give them the opportunity to cheer you on!
If you don’t feel comfortable telling your social circle, you can also utilize social media. When I began my fitness journey, I was afraid to tell many of my friends and family. Instead, I created a fitness Instagram account to document my progress and to connect with other people who were following the same path.
There’s another added benefit to going public with your goals for the new year. It’s easier to let yourself down than it is to let down the people you love. If you give your network an emotional stake in your success, you’ll be that much more motivated to live up to your word.
To take it a step further, you could also pair with an acquaintance, friend, or family member who has a similar goal and hold each other accountable. If you stop making progress or encounter an obstacle, an accountability buddy is a great resource to help get you back on track!
4. Develop a roadmap.
You now have a goal, you’ve manifested your goal by writing it down, and you’ve shared it with your support network. What’s your next step?
It’s now time to break your goals down into smaller goals to help you achieve your main objective.
Let’s revisit my example goal of becoming President of the United States. A few great sub-goals would be:
- 1 year: Run for City Council.
- 3 years: Run for State Senate.
- 6 years: Run for Congress.
- 12 years: Run for Governor.
Of course, there are many different paths you could take to become President, but these sub-goals create a reasonable, positive trajectory towards your ultimate, larger objective.
When writing sub-goals, make sure to continue to utilize the SMART goal-setting framework. Also ensure that each of your sub-goals keeps you aligned with your main goal so you stay on track.
5. Create habits that help you succeed.
Now that you’ve clearly defined where you want to go and how you’re going to get there, it’s time to take action!
Habits are actionable routines you can build into your day-to-day life that empower you to achieve your dreams.
Habits ensure you’re making consistent progress towards your goals. In short, habits are the backbone of success.
If you want to lose weight, there are several great habits that you can create in order to help you accomplish that goal. Here are just a few:
- Walk at least 10,000 steps per day
- Track your calorie input/output to make sure you’re burning more calories than you’re taking in
- Choose healthy, nutrient dense foods that give you energy
- Integrate more movement into your daily life
- Exercise regularly each week
- Get 7-8 hours of sleep each night
I could go on and on, but you get the idea!
A good habit is structured, small, and is aligned with your objectives. Here are a few key factors to keep in mind when choosing which habits to develop:
- Don’t take on too much at once. Change can be difficult and overwhelming. If you change your entire lifestyle at once, it’s much more difficult to stay on track. Focus on developing one or two good habits first before moving on.
- Track your progress. Keep a journal or diary and write down every day you stick to your new habits. If you break a habit, make a note as to why. This will help you identify “sticking points” or obstacles that get in your way of achieving your goals.
- Give yourself grace. Change is rarely instantaneous. If you make a mistake or slip up, don’t beat yourself up about it- tomorrow is a new day!
6. Evaluate your progress.
Every couple of weeks, schedule a goal evaluation. This is the perfect time to honestly assess your progress.
Have you stuck to your habits? If not, why? Are there any changes you can make in order to ensure you do follow your routines?
Many times, people find that they bit off more than they can chew. Perhaps they decided to work out 5 days a week in order to help them lose weight, but find that they only have time for 2 workouts.
That’s okay! It’s fine to adjust your habits to make them more realistic. Just keep in mind that you’ll need to adjust your expectations to go along with them. If you work out less often, you’ll likely lose weight at a slower pace. If you’re comfortable completing your goal in a different time frame, it’s perfectly reasonable to change your pace.
7. Approach obstacles with the right mindset.
Remember that quote I shared at the beginning of this article? It’s so important, I’m going to share it again.
“Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve.”
Napoleon Hill
You’re going to encounter countless roadblocks as you try to achieve your goals. Some of them may be simple to overcome, while some might seem insurmountable.
The key to staying on track is perspective. If you perceive roadblocks as limitations, that’s what they’ll be. You can’t overcome a limitation.
If you perceive roadblocks as obstacles, all you have to do is overcome those obstacles before you’re back on track.
Of course, that’s easier said than done. I can’t tell you how to overcome every obstacle in your path, but I can tell you that once you do, it’s one of the most empowering feelings in the world!
Now that you have a better idea of how to successfully achieve your goals, it’s time to go out there and be the person you’re meant to be.
You can do it- I believe in you!
Note: This post was originally published on Ciao by Shay on January 3, 2021. It was migrated to Happy Health Stylish upon my blog’s rebranding.