How To Set Goals and Keep Them

The New Year is here and it’s common practice to set a resolution to start your year off on a positive note! Whether it’s working out more, eating healthier, waking up earlier, or anything in-between, it’s a great time to press the reset button.

Unfortunately, about 80% of New Year’s resolutions are abandoned by February. Year after year, one of the most common resolutions is fitness or health related. Typically, the goal is to create a resolution that eventually leads to a healthier lifestyle - so what are some of the best ways to not just set goals, but stick to them?

Don’t Make a Resolution, Commit to an Evolution

Since resolutions have a higher potential failure rate, switching the focus to making a permanent change is a more productive alternative.  

Anyone can make a resolution, but it takes commitment, strength, and focus to make an Evolution. The best way to tackle a long-term Evolution is to set up smaller goals for yourself along the way, and make sure you’re making choices to help you live a healthier, happier life!

Write It Down

Having an idea of where you want to be in the New Year is great, but a written plan is vital to have in place when distractions occur or life gets in the way. It’s important to stay connected with your goals, so write them down and keep them in a place where you can see them every day!

Keep a note on your fridge, set daily reminders in your phone, add your goals to memo sections of your planner -whatever works best to remind yourself of what you’re looking to accomplish. For those of you who are new to goal tracking, try keeping a notebook of your goals and revisit them every week, month, or even after a year to see the positive changes you’re making! 

Set Up an Accountability System

The best way to stick to your goals is to have accountability! Get an accountability partner (someone with similar goals as you), share your journey on social media, or keep written track of your progress to make sure you’re sticking to your goals.

Don’t let yourself down - pick an accountability system and stick to it!

Find a Goal That’s Worthy of You

Starting a journey towards a better, healthier you is never easy. This is why it’s important to focus on finding a goal that’s worthy of you, not the other way around. If you choose a goal based on what you think is expected of you, or where you think you should be in the New Year, it’ll be harder to stay focused and persevere when things get tough.

Pick a goal that will uplift you, is important to you, and is worthy of your life.

Anticipate Challenges

As mentioned, starting a new journey is never easy. But being prepared for potential challenges, distractions, or any roadblocks is going to completely change how you handle them when they arise.  

Make a list of all the potential problems that could come your way when pursuing a new goal and 2-3 ways you can tackle them. Of course, there will be challenges you come across that no one can anticipate, but having any sort of contingency plan will allow you to feel more prepared to handle any potential issue..  

Remember, the focus shouldn’t be on what kind of goal you choose - but rather on evolving into living a healthier life! When you stay focused on you, creating healthier habits will be easier than you think.