If you’re like the majority of Americans who set a New Year’s resolution, chances are you’ve already abandoned it. But it’s not your fault, which is why you’re not alone.
We’ve been conditioned to use the new year to set huge, sweeping goals for ourselves with the focus being on the amazing future outcome you’ll have:
- Losing 15 pounds by the summer
- Reading a new book every week
- Getting promoted before year end
- Saving enough for a down payment on a house by spring
No matter which goal, or what target you set, you were set up to fail. Because goals like this are focused on the outcome in the distant future, not on how you get there or what you do now. And too many of these rely on willpower or memory alone.
Research shows that the way to hit those goals is actually to stop focusing on the goal itself and instead focus on the actions you can take to get there. What habits can you build so that instead of willpower, you’re relying on your routine to keep you going? What tiny actions can you take each week or each month to move you just one step closer to achieving your desired outcome?
And it turns out that building your routine through micro-changes, or tiny actions that are “too small to fail” is the best way to not only keep making progress, but to build habits that stick.
So if you’ve lost sight of that resolution you set last month, it’s okay. Let it go. Instead, focus on what you want to see in your life:
- Improve your physical health
- Stimulate your mind
- Develop your skills and abilities
- Improve your financial wellness
Then, take one small step each week to create that life for yourself:
- Replace one of your sitting meetings with a walking call
- Find a short story that intrigues you
- Talk to someone with the skills you want
- Listen to a financial wellness podcast
Repeat this process week over week and soon you’ll find you won’t even think about setting resolutions because every week is a chance to reflect and decide how you want to show up for yourself and your life.
Original post was published on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/resolutions-what-tara-cooper
