Rock Your New Year: Tip # 1

Hello! Today on the PHS Facebook page I shared a Live tip on how to push-through and achieve your New Year’s Resolution. Many people start to fall-back around this time when they set New Year’s goals but we are not doing that this year. I am bringing you today’s tip to help you be successful and stick-with that goal.

Today’s tip is two-fold; write it down and tell someone that cares about you. Get out a pen and paper and write down the goal you set January 1st, this holds you accountable to the growth you want to achieve. Then, share the goal with someone that cares about you; this gives them permission to help you remain accountable to yourself.

In the video I helped take the write it down piece a bit further. The best goals are SMART goals. Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant/Realistic, & Timely. Make your goal specific by stating exactly what you will do in your New Year’s Resolution. For example if you have a goal of “Be Healthier in 2018” you can make that specific by writing that you will exercise, eat clean, seek personal development, and read devotions in 2018. That specifically states what you WILL do in order to “be healthier” in 2018. Set measurable goals by claiming how much or how often you will do what you have committed to. We can make the previously stated goal measurable by saying you will exercise 3 times per week, eat clean 5 times per week, listen to 1 personal development podcast per day, and read 1 devotion per day. Making your goals measurable also gives you something to “check-off” and doing so is reinforcing because it leads to a release of the “happy chemicals” in your brain which makes you want to do that more often.

Next, we ensure that our goals are attainable. Do you have the resources right now to achieve the goal you are setting? This goes along with the next piece a bit in whether the goal is relevant/realistic. Is it realistic for you, in your present life? If you set a goal or workout 4 hours per day 7 days per week but you also have a full-time job, you volunteer in your community, and you have a husband and children to care for then this may be un-realistic for you. Another part of the “r” is relevance. When you succeed in accomplishing this goal will it matter? Will you move closer to the best version of yourself by accomplishing this goal. In one week or one month, on January 1st of 2019, will accomplishing this goal make a positive impact on your life?

Finally, make your goal timely. Set a time for checking in on your progress. For the goal example I gave earlier you may say that you will exercise 3 times per week, eat clean 5 days per week, listen to one personal development podcast per day, and read 1 devotion daily for the next 30 days. Check-in at that time and see how much you have accomplished. Setting shorter time-frames gives you praise and encouragement more often so even if you set the goal for the entire year of 2018 I encourage to set more frequent check-ins throughout the year.

I hope you find this week’s tip helpful and that this information encourages you to commit to and achieve the goals you have sent for 2018.

Blessings!

Jessica

Link to the Live Facebook video can be found here. Follow PHS on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and Twitter @PHSHolton for regular updates and wellness tips.