When we ring in the new year the focus is on a fresh start, resolutions, getting healthy, getting organized. Advertisements for gym memberships, work out gear, and storage bins are everywhere beckoning us toward self improvement. Yet, despite our best intentions, many of us reach the end of the first quarter of the year frustrated with our lack of progress towards our goal.

Resolutions are a nice idea. They often come from a place of reflection on our lives and what we want to be different or better. That’s a good thing, right? It is! Self reflection and clarifying a sense of purpose and making decisions to better our lives are great ideas! But that’s just it, they’re ideas.  Resolutions are thoughts and thoughts only get us part of the way there.  To put your money where your mouth (or your idea) is, you have to act.  Let’s take a look at the difference, literally.

Resolution: expression of intention, firmness of purpose, a decision.

Act:  the process of doing.

Well, there you have it.  Resolutions represent an intention to act; but we all know what road is paved with good intentions.  Intentions and decisions are just talk without action.  Fulfilling a resolution involves the process of doing.  It involves action– consistent action.  I want you to feel the pride of accomplishment that you stuck to your resolution for 2014.  That means you need to consider how you can get from intention to action.  Here are some ideas.

  1. What’s your resolution?  Pick only one.  It’s easier to focus your intention on one thing at a time.  What’s most important to you?  What would you feel best about if you changed that one thing?  What do you have the most motivation, energy, and commitment to work on? You have got to really want this, not just kinda sorta want this!
  2. Now ask yourself, what is the first small step I need to take toward this goal? What is the action?  Is the action small and realistically doable?  Be honest.  Are you willing and able to consistently take that small action step?
  3. Write it down!  Written and specific goals have a higher likelihood of being achieved than vague goals.  Write down the goal, your intention, the benefits of achieving it, why you want it.  Write anything that helps you see it concretely.  Then also write down the specific small action step and when you are going to do it.  Write reminder sticky notes, write it on your calendar, set reminder notices.  Put the device that you wrote these items in somewhere where you will see it often; for example your phone or notes on the mirror, refrigerator, and computer or television.  Have these reminders everywhere.
  4. Expect less than 100% compliance.  You’re not perfect and this is hard; accept it! New habits take time to develop.  We are likely to not be as consistent as we hope to be, after all, our old habits take so much less thought and energy!  That’s why you’ll be more successful if you just tackle one small change in behavior at a time.  Expect that you won’t always hit your mark.
  5. Now create a plan for when you fail to keep your date to go to the gym or you forgot to pay a bill or you didn’t save $10 of your pocket money because you bought that fancy coffee drink even though you said you weren’t going to!  This step is critical!  Now what?  You can’t give up! That’s what.  If you want to succeed, you have got to start again. If you skip the action toward your goal you find another time and/or some other action to keep you moving forward toward your goal.  If you skip the gym, you find time to take a walk during the workday or you come home and jump rope or use free weights while you watch TV.  If you bought that latte instead of saving your money, you bring leftovers from home for lunch the next day instead of grabbing food at the food cart.  If you ate a donut in the staff lounge you eat a lighter lunch or smaller portion at dinner.  If you “blow it” one day you remind yourself to reset and begin anew tomorrow.  You get the idea.  If you want to succeed, keep taking your specific action steps! Keep reminding yourself why you want this. Keep reminding yourself you can do this (note the emphasis on doing!).

Now that you’re armed with a specific, written plan and a small, realistic action you can take, and a consistent schedule you feel capable of sticking to for doing the action; get started….and don’t give up!  To your success in 2014!