With New Years sneaking up on us now is the time to start thinking about your New Year’s Resolution. If you haven’t thought of one yet don’t worry, there is still time. If you have thought of one, keep reading and you will find out some secrets to making your Resolution a success and completing it for maybe the first time in your life. For those who haven’t come up with one yet just start thinking about something this year that you feel you didn’t do very well or something that you have neglected doing for years. These include cutting out unhealthy foods in your diet, reading more books, picking up a certain hobby and so on. Now after you have picked out your New Year’s Resolution these are the secrets to making it a successful New Year.
Be Specific- When making your Resolution make sure you are as specific as possible. Instead of saying “I will eat less candy bars.” Change it to “I will only eat one normal sized candy bar each week, and then after 4 months I will only eat one fun size (small portion) candy bar each week.” Of course you need to base your Resolution off of what is most realistic for you and if you eat say one candy bar a day, maybe start out with only eating 4 candy bars a week and they cut it down from there.
Write it Down- Writing down your Resolution is one of the BEST ways to make sure you are always thinking about it and stay with it. Write it down more than once and post it at different place. If your resolution if about food, write it down and post it in your kitchen, also make sure you have one posted at work if you have a job, the key is to be constantly reminded of it. If your resolution is losing weight, posting pictures can be a helpful tool to keep you motivated.
Don’t Bend the Rules- The start of almost everyone’s cave in on their Resolution is the first time they think they can bend the rules of their Resolution and maybe eat one extra candy bar in a week than they are supposed to. People may also think they can take a day off of their workout routine because they don’t have the motivation to do it that day, when it comes to that you need to do a self assessment. If you really have been beating yourself down in the gym and your body needs a rest then take it, but if you are just not in the mood you need to find a way to be or just grind through it. The first time you bend the rules is most likely not the last, it opens the door that you can break the rules.
Find a Partner or Talk about it- If you have a partner who has the same New Year’s Resolution goals make sure to team up with them and do it together. When you have someone you can do it with it is easier to motivate each other and motivate yourself so you don’t let your partner down. If you are unable to find a partner, another option is to make your goal public to some of your friends and family, if you talk about it with them you will have more incentive to finish it because when you see them they will ask you about it and no one likes to admit that they quit something to their friends and family.
Reward Yourself- Don’t confuse this with bending the rules. I don’t mean reward yourself with the very thing you are trying to kick. I mean make sure that if you obtain your goal, make sure you have something of a reward for yourself. Things like this could be a short vacation for you, or doing something you have always wanted to do but haven’t, such as sky diving, base jumping, or some other want of yours.