Turn Making New Year's Resolutions into Year Round Goal Achievement
Apply successful Goal Setting Techniques to your New Year's Resolutions
(PRWEB) November 27, 2003
While Goal Setting is a powerful technique that can be practiced year round, it is around New Years that many people think most about what they want to change or accomplish for themselves. The end of the year brings about a time for reflection and assessment of personal progress that has occurred during the past year. The coming of a new year is seen as an fresh start and a time for deciding what needs to be changed and where to go next. It is for these reasons that so many people make New Year's Resolutions to accomplish things such as: to exercise more, quit smoking, pay off debt, save more money, complete projects, make more money, get organized, further education, lose weight, etc. The word resolution comes from the word 'resolve' which is to make up one's mind or decide firmly, but simply making a decision to change isn't enough to keep motivated for long.
A University of Washington study conducted by Elizabeth Miller, a former UW doctoral candidate in psychology, and Alan Marlatt, director of the university's Addictive Behaviors Research Center, set out to understand the factors that best predict success in keeping New Year's resolutions. The study found that "resolutions are a process, not a one-time effort that offer people a chance to create new habits". Marlatt, who has studied the subject for more than 20 years, suggests that to be successful with your own resolutions you must: have a strong initial commitment to make a change, develop strategies to deal with problems that will come up, and regularly track your progress. The more reviewing and monitoring you do, the better you will do. Miller has also personally learned something about resolutions. “I didn't use to make them at all,” she said. “I thought they were silly and just a culturally sanctioned event. I've learned that you can make them throughout the year.”
The requirements for achieving your New Year's Resolutions are the same as achieving any other goal you set. You must record your resolutions and goals to solidify and make them concrete. Goals need to be specific and worded properly. A plan of action outline should be developed by breaking goals down into smaller steps because big changes can be more easily made by taking small steps. Make yourself fully aware of the consequences of failing to accomplish your goal and the advantages of successful achievement, for instance, the increased risk of cancer and heart disease sustained by failing to quit smoking. Form a support system of friends and family, who will motivate you and challenge you to stick to your goals. You should also review your progress frequently and re-evaluate your goals.
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