You start out the year focused on your New Year’s Resolutions – lose weight, find a new job, get organized, spend more time with family, quit smoking. You wrote it down and taped it on the mirror in the bathroom to motivate you every day…and now it’s February. It’s cold, really cold, in most of the country. The steam from the shower has made the paper crinkle and the tape is starting to come off…and you’re seriously considering ripping the paper off, throwing it away and forgetting the whole thing. BUT DON’T!!! Don’t give up!
Think about what motivated you to make a resolution-the scale? The doctor? Your kids? If you took the time to make a resolution, write it down, share it and think about it-it’s definitely worth not giving up on so quickly. Maybe you lost some momentum achieving your goal; I know I did on mine. I was on track and a few days off the resolution wagon and it’s easy to want to give up. Sometimes the resolution was too vague. Get in shape…wow, that could take a long time for some of us. Spend more time with family…but work is busy. Quit smoking…the cravings can be really tough. Find a new job…I sent my resume, now what.
But what about breaking your resolution into smaller pieces? Don’t say “Lose weight,” say “Lose 5 pounds-then 5 more.” Spend more time each day/week with the family, even 30 minutes. Cut down on cigarettes. Call 3 people to network with to find a new job. Make your resolution something easier to own and accomplish. You don’t need anyone else, you can control these smaller steps.
Don’t let the fact that the Groundhog has predicted 6 more weeks of winter, which will really be 8+ weeks in frozen New England, deter you from achieving something you set out to do just 35 days ago.
The most important thing is to forgive yourself for getting off track, and figure out what steps you can take to get back on track. And congratulate yourself for keeping the dream alive!
Tell us about your resolution? Are you keeping it or have you stumbled? Let us know.
