With the excitement and exhilaration of the holiday season fresh in our minds, we have much to celebrate these days. Temperatures are falling and with the doldrums of the winter upon us, the holiday season comes at the perfect time when we seem need it most. As we head into the hibernation phase, being surrounded by loved ones for a week or two is a welcomed segue, and many of us need a few months of seclusion afterwards to recuperate!
With the New Year often comes reflection on the year past and resolutions about the year to come. Many of us make vows, formulate goals and compose promises that, according to one Forbes.com article, only 8% of us actually achieve. Although the statistics seem dismal, there are some tried-and-true tactics for sticking to those annual resolutions.
By creating attainable goals, starting small and treating your goals as habits you will automatically help yourself succeed. Start with an easily attainable goal, preferably one that brings you joy, such as eating better or giving someone a compliment each day. With that little success you will be inspired and motivated to make the next goal.
Also, don’t be afraid to fail. As we’ve already learned, the majority of us have a difficult time sticking to our resolutions to begin with. Plus, as Dad used to say, it’s not how you fall, but how you get up. If you falter resolve not to give up completely, but to reassess your goal and try again.
And finally, as Ernest Hemingway once said, “There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self.” If you resolve to challenge yourself to a goal in the New Year there can be none better than always striving to be the best you. Whether that means joining a club or class, trying something new, getting in touch with old friends, or talking about the hard stuff with family, you are never too old to grow and learn. And that is a goal worth sticking to!
So here’s to many successes in the New Year!