New Year's Resolutions Don't Work - Do This Instead

Happy New Year.  With the beginning of a new year, I bet many of you have spent time reflecting on the past year. You may have New Year's resolutions to do better in the coming year. Your resolutions may go something like this: "I will lose 50 pounds" or "I will improve my faith life" or "I will exercise more". You may even have started changing all of these things at the same time. Unfortunately, by mid-February, there is a good chance that you will fall back into old habits and your resolutions will be forgotten.

So, what can you do to make sure that your resolutions for self-improvement actually result in the changes you want to see? My advice is don't make New Year's resolutions. Instead, use that New Year's energy and enthusiasm for change to inspire you to make a monthly goal.  Ask yourself: "What change can I make this month that will last?"  For example, if you want to lose weight, set a goal to eat a healthy breakfast every morning. This may sound like a small change, and it is, but a small change is better than no change.

By setting a smaller, more easily achievable goal, you will get a burst of energy and a wonderful feeling of success at the end of the month when you see your accomplishment. Then you can ride that new wave of enthusiasm to set a goal for February.  I bet that you will continue to practice the new habit you established in January while making changes to another habit in February. At the end of February, reassess your progress and set a goal for March. By the end of 2020, you will have made 12 self-improvements while most of your friends and family will have forgotten all about their New Year's resolutions.

Habits take time to change. It's likely that your bad habits developed over a long time, maybe even years. So it is going to take lots of practice to change your bad habits into new, healthier habits. Be kind to yourself and set smaller, realistic goals for change so you can celebrate the success. For example, look at a big goal like losing weight and break it down into smaller habits. Write these down and then select one to work on in January. You will be tempted to try and do them all, but I beg you not to. I've been down that path and all that change at the same time is a lot of work and can be overwhelming. When you start feeling stressed, you are likely to quit just to make yourself feel better. When you pick one small goal and accomplish it, it motivates you to set the next goal. You feel empowered and capable of making the changes you want to make.

Break your monthly goal down into manageable weekly goals. Let's say you want to drink more water. How much water do you drink each day now?  If you only drink one glass of water a day, it may be too hard right at the start to say you are going to drink eight glasses of water. Instead, for the first week of the month, set a goal to drink water at all your meals. That will increase your water intake by 200%.  The next week, add two more glasses. You might add these at snack times, say 10:00 and 3:00. Now you're drinking five glasses of water when you used to only drink one. Keep adding water to your weekly goals. By the end of the month, you will be drinking eight glasses of water a day.

So, what is my goal for January?  My goal is to finish Konmari-ing my RV. I started the process in November and when the holidays came, I stopped.  My temptation is to say that I will lose weight, pray more, drink more water, cook more Whole30 meals, do all the repairs on my RV, visit Disney World more often, travel to see 11 more USA states, sleep 8 hours every night, teach more VIPKID students, introduce more people to the benefits of Young Living and blog more often. While these are all things I wish I did better, to make all these changes at once would be overwhelming and disheartening when I ultimately failed. Instead, I am going to stay focused on decluttering my RV. This focus on one goal for the month of January is more likely to affect a permanent change than all the other New Year's Resolutions combined. And . . . a tidier and more organized home will support all the other changes I want to make in the coming months. 

So, don't set a bunch of New Year's Resolutions. Instead, set 12 monthly goals this year and be amazed at how much your life will change for good. 

Keeping Your New Year's Resolutions: Finding Balance

Yes, folks, it is that time of year when we all reflect upon our past and resolve to make improvements. This year, my parents, sister Susie and I talked a lot about this in the days between Christmas and New Year's Day. My dad cleaned out his garage and threw away all the old electronics and other items that had accumulated there. He also sorted out the paperwork in his desk files. My mom read through recipes and resolved to eat healthier. She even suggested to Susie and me that we share healthy recipes with her. My mom and my sister also created an essential oil supplement plan to support my parents in their efforts to enhance the quality of their life as they head into their mid to late 80s.

Inspired by their actions, I returned to my RV in Florida and reflected on my own life now that I am "early retired" and living the "good life". What does a "good life" look like? What should I be doing to improve the quality of my own life and to make a greater impact on the world? Using biblical scripture and my favorite Oola guys' blog as tools, I examined the seven (7) areas of my life to see where there is room for improvement and greater balance. Then I wrote out my 2018 New Year's resolutions with measurable outcomes. Yes, friends, the old Cathy is back with her love of all things data.

Here are my year-long resolutions in each of the seven areas of my life. 
1. Fitness: do a biblical fast each week, eat healthier on a daily basis (Whole30 and Paleo-inspired), increase flexibility and strength

2. Faith: increase frequency of morning prayers using iBreviary app, write in my gratitude journal, increase the frequency of Mass attendance, increase the use of the  Pray-as-You go app in the evening, increase times at confession

3. Field: increase follow-up calls and letters to team members, stay longer in parks with social events to meet people, add one new member to my Young Living team each month, hold one essential oil class (in person or online) or one vendor event each week, increase posts on Facebook business page, "Be Brave"

4. Finances: record business and personal receipts in Taxbot more faithfully, research home business tax laws and submit income tax forms regularly, research health insurance options and pay for a plan

5. Family: call my parents and family members more often, send birthday and holiday cards more faithfully, visit my parents and extended family during RV travels, invite family members to join me in my adventures

6. Friends: regularly connect on social media, visit friends during RV travels, call just to talk and catch up, send birthday cards, update contact information

7. Fun: I need to balance this with other areas since right now I am having too much fun! Sightseeing, hiking, splurge on one nice restaurant a month or great take-out, Disney World annual pass to use each year for a total of 30 days or more, computer games with friends and family, movie nights, YouTube videos, reading, genealogy

I know this is a long list, so I am focusing on only one area each month so I don't overwhelm myself. January's fitness goal is to walk daily for 30 minutes and to eat a Whole30 diet. To measure this goal I use the Nike running app so I know that in the past three months, I walked an average of 2 times per week.  So this month my measurement goal is to increase this.

Now, one thing I've learned about myself as I've moved into a semi-retired life is that I need some accountability to others or I end up aimlessly wandering through my days. So, my dear friends, family and blog followers, I am going to make myself accountable to you. Along with sharing about my RV travels, campgrounds and sightseeing adventure, I will regularly post updates on my progress. So check back over the next few months to see how I am doing and if you see me slipping into bad habits, you have my permission to kick me in the butt (figuratively) and challenge me to refocus on my goals.

I hope you had a blessed Christmas and a happy New Year. May your own resolutions help to make your life even better tomorrow than it is today. If you feel like sharing some of your own goals, click on the word "comment" below and then in the comment box, type up some of those things that you hope to accomplish. That way we can all pray for each other and hold each other accountable.