Resolution.
"The act of finding an answer or solution to a conflict or problem."
How many times have you resolved to improve your lifestyle habits?
Have you ever promised yourself that you will exercise more, start saving money or eat a healthier diet?
According to research, ~40% of people abandon their New Year Resolution after only one month.
I'm not for resolutions but I'm all for setting goals. But for most people, a mental shift is needed. As you go about your day and think about all the things that are making it hard for you to pursue your goal. To reach the end goal, you must embrace the steps in the process of getting there. Your thoughts matter.
One of the most effective ways of enjoying the process of pursuing a goal is replacing that one word "have" with "get". Immediately, you should feel a sense of calm of what you "get" to do. Words like "need" or "have" or "must" can bring a sense of shame or guilt. In contrast, pursuing a goal with words like "want to" or "get to" can be much more motivating.
By replacing mandatory words like "I should" with empowering words like "I choose to" you are more likely to stick with the action plan needed to pursue your goal. Sometimes all you need is to reframe a situation and to change your perspective.
If you are struggling with motivation or feel it's impossible to move forward with your goals, I encourage you to spend some time with these questions:
2022 Reflection Questions
1. What is the best thing that happened?
2. What challenges did you overcome?
3. What did you want to do but were too afraid to try?
4. What was the most important lesson you learned?
5. What new habits did you start?
6. How did you fail?
7. What got in the way of your success?
8. What did you struggle with?
9. What did you leave unfinished?
10. What did you do for your physical and mental health?
2023 Intention Questions
1. What do you intend to be different at the end of this year?
2. What do you want to accomplish?
3. What will be your purpose this year?
4. How will you make this year matter?
5. What opportunities do you want to create for yourself?
6. What do you want to change completely?
7. What personal qualities do you want to strengthen?
8. What skills do you want to learn?
9. How will you take care of yourself physically and mentally?
10. Who do you want to become this year?
As a reminder, most New Year's resolutions fail because there isn't much thought into the meaning behind the resolution and what it will take to achieve it. Your focus is likely centered on what will happen when you reach your goal and there is no planned-out process of actually achieving the resolution. Plus, there's often little meaning attached to the resolution - it's something that you feel you need to do.
I'm all about self-improvement. Ultimately, you need to understand why you want to change and why it is what you want. Find purpose and meaning in every change of behavior, action, thought or habit.