Does this sound familiar? You hit the ground running, straight out of the starting block on 1st January – excited and motivated that this is the year you’re going to stick to your New Year’s Resolutions. Then, just a few weeks later, those resolutions seem like a distant memory. If this is you, you’re definitely not alone. Every year, millions of people set resolutions that are never achieved.
Studies show that, on average, only 9% of people are successful in following through with resolutions or goals they set themselves at the beginning of the year. Some of the reasons for this include having unrealistic expectations, no accountability, or setting too many resolutions that are simply impossible to stick to. So, how about we flip the narrative this New Years to set yourself up to succeed in whatever changes you really want to achieve? Here are my top tips for implementing positive change that sticks: 1. HAVE A GOAL IN MIND When you know what you want and where you’re going, it will be so much easier to get there. Any ambiguity around what you want will make your journey harder and slow you down. For example, I want to eat healthier, earn more money or achieve more balance are all very ambiguous. How can you be clear and specific about what you want? 2. KEEP IT SUPER SIMPLE Choose one or two areas of your life that you would love to improve (and know you can commit to) rather than trying to change 10 different things all at once. Trying to do too much will create overwhelm and it’s hard to move forward when you feel like that. When you’ve established new habits and positive change in one area, you can focus on something else. This means you are consistently moving forwards and those small incremental steps add up to big changes over time. 3. BE REALISTIC Sometimes, the gap between where you are right now and where you want to be can be quite big. So, be realistic about what you can achieve right now and build on that. Rather than say you’ll hit the gym every single day when you haven’t been for five years, commit to one or two sessions a week to begin with. The important thing is that it fits in with your current circumstances and is something you can stick to. 4. FIND AN ACCOUNTABILITY PARTNER It can be really hard going it alone and it’s very easy to talk yourself out of doing something when you’ve only got yourself to answer too. When you have an accountability partner, you are much more likely to do what you say you’ll do. It can be someone you do an activity with, or someone you trust to check in with regularly. Remember, starting is the hardest part! It takes 95% of your mental energy just to start a task, yet once you’ve started it is so much easier to continue. If you have done 6 days, you can easily go to 7. If you’ve done 7, keep going to 8 and so on. Here’s to creating long lasting, positive changes! Nicky is an award-winning business coach. To find out more about her services, head to: nicky-masson-global.business.site
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