We say it every year, right?
“This year is going to be different.”
“New Year, New Me.”
But can we make it true? Can we actually make changes to make a new me? I think you can…
When a new year starts, most of us make resolutions. They typically only last until the end of January or mid-February because we tend to give up. We either don’t have accountability to help us or we feel like we’ve reached a good point or we find it too hard to keep going.
Think about your past resolutions. Why have you stopped working on them? Now think about the ones you’ve kept this year. Why are you not going to stop working on those??
Here are my tips to help you create a resolution and keep it going this year.
Tip 1: Create a vision board and post it somewhere you can see it every single day!
A vision board gives you a visual image of your goals, your wants, your dreams and all the in between. You can do this the old fashioned way with poster board and magazines or you can do this the new way using an app like Canva. You decide what your goals are, pick the images that go along with those goals and add the text to tell the Universe what your goal is and when you’d like to accomplish it by. Then post it somewhere you will see it every single day. This act seems small, but it will help make big changes overall.
Tip 2: Get a planner and a journal.
These two manuals are designed to help you stay on track and do a brain dump with everything that’s going on in your head and around you. I use both and plan to every single day. Here’s how – In the morning, review my planner to see what I have going on for the day. In the evening, take a few minutes to write in my journal, all my thoughts from the day, including my gratitudes and my struggles and brain dump so I can rest easily. Then just before bed, review my planner for the next day and write down the events or To Dos that are missing. It takes time to get into this habit but it is possible. You don’t have to get anything fancy either. Head to Target and pick out your favorite one!
Tip 3: Find an accountability buddy.
By finding a buddy, you can keep your resolutions going past the end of February. The buddy can be a friend, a coworker, a family member…whoever you choose. BUT, I want you to choose someone that is just as dedicated as you are. An accountability buddy is there to lean on, provide you guidance and help you play Devil’s Advocate. An accountability buddy is NOT there just to tag along for the ride. They need to put in work too, so choose wisely. And when you do, make a schedule for talking every so often to see where you’re at with your goals. Have specific discussion points planned for your conversations so you can make sure you have progress each time you time. And make it fun. This isn’t school, this is life so make it enjoyable.
Now that you’ve heard my tips, it’s time for you to use these or create your own and put them into action. Your first step…tell me your resolution for next year and how you plan to keep it! Can’t wait to hear from you!