Goals

6 Ways to Keep Your Momentum Going - AFTER January 1

Friday, January 02, 2015

Commitment means staying loyal to what you said you were going to do, long after the mood you said it in has left you.It's January 2nd.  What's that mean?  It means it's time to work.  It means it's time to make those goals more than resolutions.  The time for plans and wishes is over; it's time for action.

It's easy to dream about the new life waiting just on the other side of the new year.  It's easy to be distracted by the shiny objects flashing their brilliance across our faces.  Sometimes it's hard to remember how much work those things require.

Have you ever made goals or resolutions only to see them fail in the first week or month?  Guess what?  You are NOT alone!  In fact, according to Forbes and Quartz , only 8% of people keep their New Year's Resolutions.  8%!!!  But not you, and not me...  Not this year!

So, how do you keep up that momentum?  How do you make those goals happen, despite the overwhelming odds against you?

  1. Don't make TOO MANY changes.  What's that?  But you have tons of goals to accomplish?  Fine.  You have all year.  Don't try to make them all at once.  Keep in mind, the things you are trying to change?  They have become ingrained in you.  Trying to change too many things at once is the same as changing your identity.  Shake the foundation, and you shake your core.  And that means setting you off-balance.
  2. Don't be TOO INTENSE.  Yep, you read that right.  As excited as you are right this moment (or as excited as you were at midnight on the 1st), don't go "all in."  The issue with going hardcore immediately is this little issue called burnout.  Willpower can only last so long.  Also, who wants to be 100% committed to an idea, only to lose the rest of your life?  Balance is incredibly important.  Trust me, I know from firsthand experience.  If your goals are all-consuming - just like kindling - you will be consumed.  Don't allow yourself to go up in smoke.
  3. Keep believing you can - and you WILL - reach your goal.  There are going to be obstacles.  There are going to be times you desperately want to give up.  Heck, according to the statistics, 92% of people do!  But keep going.  Even if it takes longer than expected.  Even if you fail (and actually, failure is good).  Just keep going.  Believe you can, and you will keep finding ways to get around or over obstacles.  
  4. Measure your progress.  That means the good, the bad, and everything in between.  Want to lose weight?  Track your measurements.  Take monthly progress pics (yes, even if you bomb your fitness or nutrition for a week....or three).  It will inspire you on your bad days, and it will make you feel amazing when you succeed.  Regardless, track your progress.  It will keep you going.
  5. Be accountable.  Find someone who will keep you on the "straight and narrow."  Knowing someone out there is willing to check up on you, to cheer you on, and to straighten you out when needed can be just the thing to keep you going.  I know that having a coach and a success partner drives me to keep my end of the bargain.  Do you have someone like that?  If not, I'd love to chat with you, to provide you with that gift of accountability.  I'd love to hear your goals and help you reach them.  There is NOTHING better than seeing people succeed, nothing!  Will you?
  6. Most important of all, remember your WHY.  Why did you make the goal in the first place?  Remember that emotional connection?  The feeling/experience you are either trying to recapture or attain?  That is what will take you through the lowest lows and the most humiliating failures.  It gives you something to fight for, to believe in.  Your why will pull everything else together.

So who's in this for the long haul?  Who will succeed this time?  Let me know in the comments!

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