A Two-Step Plan to Keep Your New Year’s Goals in Line, All Year Long  

Setting ambitious New Year’s resolutions can be fun and motivating, particularly when you have accountability partners with whom you can check in if you feel you are getting off-track. However, resolutions can also often make us feel worse about ourselves than when we first started. Take, for instance, if you have resolved to lose weight, volunteer more, or even get more sleep. Suddenly, it’s five months into the year and you are stressed, working more hours than anticipated, and with no time to build in your resolutions to your already-taxed time.

Don’t feel badly – you’re not alone!  Statistics show that by June over 50% of the people have not kept their resolutions, leading them to feel deflated and defeated. I know this all too well because the same thing happened to me for years. I had the best intentions, however, as with many people, life happens…!

A Streamlined, Focused Approach to Resolutions

So, I began a new approach: to change my “resolution” mantra to my “recalibration” mantra. My thought was this: if I recalibrate my thinking, take time to breathe, center myself, and change my approach to reaching my goals, I would be more likely to conquer them without stress.

So I had to find the place and space that provided me the best opportunity to stay motivated and focused on my goals and found that the water — whether it be beach, river, or lake — totally soothes my soul and allows me to get “in the zone” and remain focused.  Thus, at the end of each year, I go on an extended vacation near the water, where I spend the first week reviewing the year with this question being at the forefront: “Did I meet my goals both professionally and personally?” Then, the second question is, “What do I want to accomplish in the following year?” Two questions. That is it. They might appear easy, but when you really think about them, there are many facets to each.

Most people, women in particular, are hard on themselves, so when you think about the year and if you met your goals, the first inclination may be to take the negative approach and think, “No, I did not,” while some will say, “Yes, I did; however, I could have done more.” The first step to recalibrating is to take the time to acknowledge and celebrate the successes of the year. Really think about – for instance — the amazing way you knocked that big presentation out of the park, how you finished the major project ahead of schedule to your help your client reach their goals, how you saved more money than you had planned, how you integrated a good wellness practices into your daily life, and how you were able to volunteer more consistently.  We are so busy worrying about the next big thing that we don’t live in the now. That’s where the first step comes in, forcing you to slow down, become aware of your surroundings and to be present in the moment.

The second step is to identify what you want to accomplish. That does not mean making a list of twenty items; rather, take a look at two or three things that are really important to you and attainable, while stretching you out of your comfort zone a bit. One of my favorite quotes is “If your dreams and goals don’t make you uncomfortable, they are not big enough,” and that is my approach to what I set out to accomplish each year.

Here is the methodology: Develop a contract for yourself, with your goals listed, accompanied by an action plan that includes a mid-year review which allows for modification or course correction if needed. The contract can make you realize how committed you are to these goals, and provides an accountability factor as well.  I myself keep the contract in a place where I will see it on a daily or weekly basis as a reminder of what I want to accomplish. 

Create Your Own Performance Review

The final and most critical key here is to find the time, mid-year, to recalibrate again so that you can assess where you are and if you need to make any modifications. If you don’t have the time in your schedule to do an extended vacation mid-year, take a long weekend (and by all means, don’t feel guilty about taking the time you need to focus on yourself, because is essential to your yearly success!).  Once away from all the hubbub, get your contract out and review where you are, making slight adjustments where needed.  (I find that I have often written in a “stretch goal” because I found myself very close to attaining something that I thought would take me the entire year.)

Recalibration is truly about taking the time to slow down, focus, centering yourself and unplugging from the world for a short time.  You can do it; the texts, calls and emails will be there waiting for you afterwards! Just remember, you can take care of those, but you will always fall short of taking care of all the other things in life if you don’t take care of yourself.