Every year at about this time, I start thinking about what goal I want to set as my New Year’s Resolution. I’ll be honest, in the past there have been years that I have not made any resolutions, and then there were years that I have made several—probably too many at one time because I was not able to realistically stick to all of them.
As we welcome the year 2010, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on keeping New Year’s Resolutions. Have you heard the old saying: “failing to plan is planning to fail”? I find this to be especially true in regards to setting goals. Is there a New Year’s Resolution you have been considering? Do you have a plan for achieving it? Do you know what steps you need to take to make it a reality? Having a plan, a course of action, which will help you to achieve your goal, is the first step you need to take to be successful.
Now that you have a goal and a plan for achieving it, have you written it down yet? Until you have it in writing, you have not fully committed yourself to working towards your goal. Many New Year’s Resolutions begin with good intentions, but without the commitment, without writing it in black and white, motivation falls by mid-January and it could be another 11 months before you even begin to think about working towards your goal again.
Once you have your plan and your goal written out, it is time to find support. The support you will need will depend on your goal. If your goal is to eat more fruits and veggies, support like mypyramid.gov will be very helpful. If your goal is to quit smoking, you needed form of support may be gum, medication, and family and friends that want to help you quit. The research shows having support goes a long way towards achieving your goals.
Lastly, remember that you did not build the habits you are trying to change overnight. It may take you some time to achieve your new goals. Have patience with your efforts at change and stay positive. You can DO this!
Happy New Year from everyone here at The Rite Bite. May it be your healthiest year yet! Please feel free share your New Year’s Resolution with the blog!
