For a long time I’ve been quite a fan of making New Year’s resolutions. I think to so many what is so novel is that we get to start with a blank slate. At least, that’s what I love about them. That each year we get to start over. It is liberating to know that you – yes you can change your life. Now here’s the deal, you can actually change your life any day of the calendar year. In fact, I recently read an article that recommended starting your New Year’s resolutions in September! But that doesn’t seem so crazy when you consider the fact that everyone spends New Year’s day recovering from the night before. So why not start a day or two early? If you’re one of those people reading this and thinking “I don’t want help making the best new year’s resolutions, it’s a sham. It needs to be a lifestyle change” (que my husband here), we’re going to show you how to make them stick! In fact we’re sharing 6 tips to help you make the best new year’s resolutions for yourself.

Many Americans make new year’s resolutions, but hardly any actually achieve them. According to Huffington Post less than 8% of people actually do.

There are lots of theories as to why this happens. Some think that it’s because we start off not believing in ourselves enough and others are so cynical that they won’t even make any resolutions.

But I think a big factor is that we’re not setting goals in a way to actually make them work better. I didn’t come up with the idea of “SMART” goals, but I definitely think that it’s worth sharing. SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely. After all you want to have “NO RAGRETS” like Scotty P. when you write them out. Seriously – who wants to re-do them a few days later? The first 5 tips in making your best New Year’s resolutions are going to be focused on goal-writing. The last tip is going to be what helps them to stick!

How to Make the Best New Year’s Resolutions

1. Specific

Do you remember writing stories in English in elementary school? Your teachers may have told you to answer the five W’s: Who, Why, What, When and Where and that would help you get started. Same deal here. Instead of writing “I’m going to build a photography business” a more useful goal would be “I’m going to build a photography business which will make X number of dollars annually and this will be accomplished by working for X number of  clients each week”. This tip is important because the road is paved with flat squirrels who couldn’t make up their mind. Part of making the best new year’s resolutions is being definitive about where you want your path to end up!

2. Measurable

Your goal has to be measurable. And you will need target dates to help you measure your success. Lets say you want to get in shape for a race or something of that nature, you would need to set target dates to evaluate your progress. Think of them as ‘mini-goals’ to help keep you on track. You can’t wake up and expect to run a marathon if you can’t meet your minimum goals each week/month/etc. If you aren’t working towards incremental goals it can feel a lot like failure because you’re expecting too much too quick.

For instance, there are ways to jump start the views your blog is receiving. But ultimately if you are wanting 1,000 views monthly you’re going to need to break this down on a monthly basis. Yes you may get lucky writing about viral topics but you want consistency and this will take some time to build. Don’t ever underestimate the importance of measuring progress to check where you are. It’s an integral part of keeping your best new year’s resolutions.

3. Attainable

Change is exciting and that’s what you’re trying to do. However – there are constraints. It’s called real life. You can do everything in your power to accomplish your goals but it needs to be understood that there is a certain degree of growth to accomplish them that you’ll need and this does take time. You definitely have the capacity to accomplish anything you can imagine but you need to understand that there are perhaps financial limits or time constraints or the development of new skills that need to be considered. Ultimately – challenge yourself but don’t overwhelm yourself. There is a difference. If you don’t focus on what is attainable by breaking them down little by little you will probably burn yourself out (circa me for years).

4. Realistic/Relevant

Basically you need to be willing and able to work towards your goal. What makes this goal to relevant to your future? It’s important to know this because if this piece of dedication and validation isn’t here – you can kiss your resolve and ultimately your goal goodbye. As the old saying goes, when the going gets tough, the tough get going. You need an anchor, so find yours.

For me, if I’m having a difficult time balancing blogging, work, wifeing (I’m sure this is an actual verb) I just think about where I came from. I come from strong roots. My dad’s side immigrated from Russia and worked like dogs when they came over. They were farm workers in the United States before they ever actually owned a farm or ranch. If they could find success in an alien country with limited resources but a tough as nail work ethic so can I. On mom’s side of the family I come from a line of notably strong women. Not only my mom and great aunt – but my great grandmother. Cancer survivor of three times, exceptional mother despite a gambling husband during the great depression and feisty until the day she was laid to rest. They would look at my struggles and probably chuckle, because I have it pretty good. I’m incredibly blessed, but I want to continue their legacy of strength, success, love and endurance to make them proud.

5. Timely

Set your end date and stick to it! This isn’t negotiable because there’s always ‘tomorrow’. Giving yourself a date leads to a sense of urgency which will help motivate you to actually accomplish all of your mini goals and be successful.

I know it can seem scary to set a date initially because you’re not sure of the growth you’re capable within each time constraint. But once you get in the groove and see what is realistic for you, your body, your finances, etc. this is a very valuable tool.

6. Have a Positive Mindful Outlook

Don’t ever underestimate the ability of you to speak and write your future into being. If you really want to stick with an overall goal you need to write the goal/affirmation five times a day. You will also need to post it around your house in three places you will see it daily. Eventually you will begin to believe in your goal.

Your mind is incredibly valuable as  a tool. Probably even more valuable than having all of the monetary opportunities in the world at your disposal. Just as you can speak something into being if you are doing the work, you can impede your path. Failure is part of life and any goal. We are humans and will probably not be successful one hundred percent of the time. But dwelling on and sharing your failures with others will not do you any good. Go ahead and acknowledge that it didn’t happen this time. But don’t fall into beating yourself up over it. You just need to re-target and believe in it for next time. Even the best new year’s resolutions can fail if you aren’t dedicated to pursuing them in the right head space.

Don’t believe in this method? It’s the same one that got me from a handful of views a day to over six hundred per month within five months.

What are your New Years Resolutions? Are you going to write your best New Year’s resolutions yet or stick with an older method?

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