New Year’s Encouragement
With every new year brings New Year’s Resolutions and good intentions for many. However, it is common for many people for these plans to not last. There are many reasons for this and some things that you can do to plan for success.
Our plans for change often fall through when it is too much or too overwhelming. It is important to evaluate your goals to determine if it is a realistic goal and that you are also not attempting to change too many things at once. Break down the things you would like to make into small, specific action steps and concentrate on completing these smaller tasks, rather than focusing on the broad goal. Write down these action steps in a place you can see them and review your progress. Think of these changes as “goals” and the plans you will take to achieve them in the new year, rather than thinking of them as a New Year’s Resolution. For many people, a New Year’s Resolution gives them an “out” and are known for often being broken. Therefore, plan on making positive changes and goals. These are a great thing to re-evaluate throughout the year, rather than waiting for the new year to set aside time to plan.
Do not become discouraged if the goals that you plan to address are a process with ups and downs. Researchers often cite the time required to build a new habit or get used to a new change as being anywhere from 21 to 30 days. Becoming comfortable with a change takes longer. The more often an action is repeated in this time, the stronger the connection will become. It is normal to have ups and downs and “lapses”. Rest knowing that tomorrow is a new day and a fresh beginning. And you will have all of the progress that have led you to that point and will be able to build on these successes.
Please visit the below website for some common New Year’s Resolutions or goals compiled by the National Foundation for Credit Counseling, and some tips to avoid pitfalls of some of the more popular goals.
~Author: Kelly Carrier, MEd, LPCA, NCC (guest blogger) {originally posted for the 2013 New Year}
