New Years Resolutions

Here is the truth about New Years Resolutions. You don’t need to wait until the dawn of a new year to make them! The truth is that most people who make new years resolutions give up on them by the end of the first week in January.

Why is this?

Well two reasons in my experience. The first is that there is a socially accepted pressure to make New Years Resolutions and tell those around you what you have decided you will do. The second reason is that although the goal or goals may be admirable; like giving up smoking or drinking, to exercise more, to lose weight etc, there is no emotional driver behind them and as such they are doomed to failure for another year.

There are also the Christmas and New Year celebrations to take into account. The majority of people are usually so hung over on January 1 that any thought of doing something to improve their life just seems a million miles away. The they get back into the old routine of getting back to work and the new years resolutions are soon forgotten.

So what should you do?

I am not saying don’t make new years resolutions but don’t leave them until 31 December. Why not make them now! Or any other time in the year for that matter. Achieving goals or desires requires two things:

1. Emotional commitment

2. Momentum

If you give up smoking on January 1 and then start again on January 3 the momentum is lost and it will take a lot of will power to get it back again. If you attach a heavy emotion to the goal (a big reason WHY you should give up smoking) then this will build inside of you and give you the push that you need to go through with it.

These kind of goals should not be taken lightly and making them while in a half drunken stupor on New Years Eve will almost certainly mean that you will not achieve them. Do it before or after the celebrations. Write your desires for the new year down and determine exactly why you want to achieve them. Make them specific and add time scales. And make several copies of your written New Years Resolutions so that you are constantly reminded of them.

For a bit of Cristmas / New Year fun you can download an amusing (but naughty) PDF presentation about New Years Resolutions here.

Take action today to change your life. Don’t wait until the end of year festivities are about to start.

Go for it