New Year, New You
A
lot of people begin the New Year by making resolutions. We’ve all been
there. We take a vow to lose weight, exercise more or spend more time
with our family. We start the year with great intentions, but then we
quickly relapse into old habits. Why is it so hard to stick to those New
Year’s resolutions?
Here are some ways you can make your intentions or goals a reality this year:
1. Write down your intentions or goals in a journal and create a vision board and keep them in a visible place. Some ideas are attaching your intentions to your refrigerator door and/or the dashboard of your car.
2. Get to the source of whatever is keeping you in a rut. Are
you in a stressful relationship that causes you to eat a pint of Ben
& Jerry’s every night? Are you stressed at your job and feel too
tired to exercise after work? If you don’t tackle the root of the behavior, it will be much harder to accomplish your goal.
3. Be clear about what your life would look like once you achieve your goal. If
you resolve to go to the gym more, how will this benefit you? Get
connected to the result of your action, and you will be more likely to
stick with your plan.
4. Share your resolutions with friends and family. Hold
each other accountable for achieving your goals. If you want to go to
the gym more, have a friend call you two or three times a week to check
on you or invite them to join you.
5. Reward yourself with every little accomplishment. If your intention is to lose weight and you lose 1 pound a week, pamper yourself with a massage.
Big
changes do not require big leaps. Permanent change is more likely to
happen gradually than through one big restrictive plan. Allow yourself
to climb the ladder one rung at a time.
