Sabtu, 12 Januari 2013

7 Great Ways to Supercharge Your New Year’s Resolutions


7 Great Ways to
Supercharge Your
New Year’s Resolutions

Brought to you by George Tee

Let’s face it folks.  We’ve all made dozens of New Year’s Resolutions that we haven’t followed through with.  But this is the year of redemption for all those forgotten promises.  It’s that time of year again, time to turn over a new leaf and live life to it’s fullest.  It’s time to resolve to lose that extra weight you’ve been carrying around, start the home based business you’ve always dreamed of or whatever it is that you desire to do with yourself and your life. 

I know what you’re thinking; you’ve tried this before, right?  You’ve made plenty of resolutions that you didn’t keep.  Maybe you’ve even forgotten them by the time you rolled out of bed on January 2nd.  This year is different.  This year you will be equipped with the tools you need to make resolutions that will stick.  This year, your resolutions will be supercharged with commitment and power like never before. 

Did you know that less than 10% of New Year’s Resolutions are actually kept?  This year, you’ll join the ranks of the dedicated, committed and strong. These seven very important tips are the tools that the other 90% don’t have to supercharge their New Year’s resolutions.

1. Be concrete

Instead of talking about things you’d like to do, talk about things that WILL happen.  Use statements like “I’m going to have family dinners every Sunday.” Or “I will take a college class this semester.”  Avoid talking about your resolutions using phrases that begin with statements such as “I’d like to…” “ Wouldn’t it be nice…” or “Maybe I’ll…”  These statements leave you to shuffle around the subject without actually committing yourself to it.  Using concrete terms will help you commit to the idea yourself.  It is a simple confidence building technique that will help you internalize your goals and achieve them.  By the time Sunday rolls around, you won’t even question if you are going to have a nice big family dinner, because you’ve already told yourself you would.  In short, the words you use for your New Year’s Resolutions can’t give you and out, you have to say it like you mean it.

 

2. Write them down

Writing your New Year’s Resolutions down seems rudimentary, but experts agree that the rate of success is exponentially higher if you do.  Writing them down is another form of commitment that starts the ball rolling to help you make a successful resolution.

Now that you’ve gotten your resolutions down on paper, don’t just stuff your list at the bottom of your sock drawer.  Post your list in a prominent location where you’re sure to see it.  Better yet, make a few copies and post it in a few important places around the house, at work or even in the car.  Having this constant reminder will help you to remember your resolutions – a key step to following through with them!

 

3. Be Specific

If you give yourself a specific New Year’s resolution, you won’t know exactly what you are supposed to do.  Don’t just set a goal of exercising more, but give yourself a specific, yet achievable schedule for it.  Try setting a specific goal such as exercising every Monday, Wednesday and Friday before work for an hour.  You may want to specify your resolution even further by naming the location and activity as well.  The important part is to give yourself a specific goal that you can follow through with in a concrete manner. You may live a very sedentary lifestyle and try to get out of your own goal by saying that a walk to the mailbox or walk through the mall is sufficient to satisfy your resolution to “exercise more.”  However, you can avoid resolution failure by telling yourself what exactly needs to be done and when.  For example, setting a goal of walking 1 mile around the neighborhood creates a much easier resolution to follow because it involves concrete activities to help you monitor your progress.

If your resolution is a bigger goal that will take more time such as starting your own business, you need to map out all of the smaller goals that you need to accomplish along the way.  Give yourself a timeframe for each of the small projects required to meet the long-term goal.  Give yourself a due date for everything from coming up with a logo, slogan, brochure to finding an office and buying staples.  With all of your small milestones mapped out, the whole process of starting up your own business will feel much less daunting.

 

4. Tell everyone you know

One of the worst mistakes you can make is to not tell anyone other than yourself.  For example, if your resolution was to lose ten pounds and you told no one else about it, then you very well may show up at dinner at a friend’s house only to be greeted by all of the unhealthy foods you just swore off.  And since you never told that friend about losing the ten pounds and you won’t want to offend your friend by not eating his or her food, you go ahead and break your diet, “just this once.”

By telling everyone you know, you are setting yourself up for success.  Each and every person you tell your resolution to will be rooting for you and will probably check up on your progress.  Whether your goal is to save up for a family vacation, exercise regularly, or spend more time with loved ones, you will invariably be questioned on your progress and your friends and family will revel in your success right along with you.  This just creates another measure of accountability to help you be successful with your New Year’s resolutions.

Many people fear the rejection if they do not succeed at their resolution.  For example, one man made a commitment to himself to train for a marathon.  He was hesitant to tell anyone in fear that he might become injured and not be able to complete the race.  However, after he began training and developed trust in the training program he was following, he realized that he needed the support of everyone he knew to cross the finish line of such a monumental task.  Although runners are always at the risk of injury, he found that the support he gained from his friends and family was actually just what he needed - not only to get himself to the finish line, but also to get through the disappointment of an injury if it were to happen.

5. Set Realistic Goals

One of the biggest mistakes most people make is setting themselves up for failure.  For example, if your resolution is to lose 20 pounds in January or winning the lottery, you probably won’t be very successful.  Achieving goals takes time and effort on your part.  Don’t expect things to happen just because you thought of as you watched the ball drop in Times Square.  If you set unrealistic goals, you will quickly become discouraged and likely stop pursuing them at all.  A better approach to a weight loss goal would be to make a resolution to eat healthy foods and exercise at least three times a week.  As you begin your new lifestyle, you can’t expect yourself to never eat a Big Mac again, but you have to make a commitment to move those muscles and make meal choices that leave you satisfied and not feeling like a dead weight.

It is also very important that you are careful not to set goals on top of goals.  If you’ve resolved to start your own home based business this coming year, don’t set first year monetary goals on top of it or you will likely end up disappointed and in search of a 9-5 job.  Like many goals, starting a home based business can be a trying experience and may not pay out the big bucks in the first year while you’re getting it up off the ground.  First you need to experience the satisfaction of just getting your business up and running.  Once you get a feel for how things are going to operate and how big you want to let it get, then you can set realistic goals for how much you want to make. 

Keeping your resolutions singular in focus is an especially important point because it is very easy to do.  If you resolve to lose weight and weight lift everyday, you may be disappointed when if you do not achieve the weight loss you were expecting.  Since muscle weighs more than fat, it’s very easy for you to exercise, eat properly and gain weight due to increased muscle mass.  However, your body fat may be decreasing and helping create a healthier you.

6. Set a positive goal

If your new year’s resolution is to eat healthier to help combat high cholesterol, try setting a positive goal such as eating healthy snack foods instead of a goal of laying of the chips and soda.  The latter goal comes with a negative connotation of eating those things that are bad for you and this will almost undoubtedly put you in a bad mindset.  You’ll feel like you couldn’t possibly choose anything other than French fries, chips, candy or cookies.  However, if you make your New Year’s resolution to eat healthy snack foods, you get your mind turning as to what snacks you might eat that are good for you.  Hopefully, images of good things like oranges, carrots, cheese, whole grain crackers or yogurt start popping in your head until you see one that sounds appealing.  You then waltz into your kitchen and find a snack that fits the bill of health without ever thinking about any of those things you shouldn’t have.  This goal setting technique can almost eliminate you thinking about anything you could do (or eat!) that might keep you from your goal.

You can also help yourself stay positive by giving yourself positive reminders about your resolution.  If you’ve resolved to quit smoking, you should place positive reminders about how strong you are around the house, at work, in your day planner or anywhere you think your eyes might fall during the day.  Use any slogans that might perk you up and keep you on track.  Remind yourself that you’ve turned over a new leaf and that you are a strong person.  As corny as it may sound, having a positive outlook towards the commitments you’ve made is one of the most important aspects of getting there.  These little slogans will serve as a pick-me-up when you’re down and as a great reminder to stay on the straight and narrow path when you’re on it.

7. Visualize your success

Last but not least, you need to close your eyes and visualize what your resolution success would mean.  What will change when you succeed?  If you’ve vowed to get yourself out of debt, picture yourself without the stress of overdue bills, maxed out credit cards and compounding late fees and interest.  Realizing the success of your goal before you get there will help you stay on track and focused on attaining whatever New Year’s resolution you make.


Tidak ada komentar:

Posting Komentar

Pendapat, Pertanyaan dan Komentar Konstruktif Anda ?