With the New Year Vow to Make Your Goals Attainable

2010 January 1

by admin

It’s such an easy thing to do. We sit down each year and dash off a wish list of all the ways we want our lives to change. We step hopefully into each New Year that comes around, eager to improve our lives for the better. And yet, some weeks down the road we find ourselves derailed from our well-intentioned tracks. We give up on our goals, terribly disappointed, only to make the same list next year and suffer the same disappointment yet again. How can we make effective changes in our lives? How can we make that New Year, that new leaf, count for something?

First of all, we must think through what it is we hope to accomplish. Do we know exactly what it is we want, or do we make resolutions that are just too vague to be implemented? Rather than resolve to be ‘happier this year” make a list of the specific, positive changes you can make that will bring you happiness. Decide instead to take that painting class you have been interested in for so long, or resolve to brush up your resume and make a schedule for pavement pounding. In the same vein, don’t decide you will simply handle money matters differently this year – decide on specific ways to do this: I resolve to reconcile my bank statement every month. I resolve to stop using my credit card until it is paid in full. I resolve to follow the budget I have prepared. List specifics and mark them off as you accomplish them.

Look at your list once more before you get started. Are these things that rely on the actions or feelings of others? The only person you can rely on to make changes is yourself. Depending on the whims of others will bring disappointment since we cannot guarantee their actions. Look to the ways you can change yourself and discover ways you can cope with the actions of others. These are your resolutions, not someone else’s. Only resolve what is in your power to change.

Take stock of what you want to achieve. How doable is each resolution? If the changes you want to make are extreme ones, they don’t necessarily have to be unreachable. Consider making step-by-step resolutions on a smaller scale so that you have a roadmap for making dreams come true. This year resolve to get out of debt by making a budget and paying off debt. Next year, resolve to put a certain amount of money into savings every payday. The year after, you can resolve to find a house to buy!

Foremost, believe in your resolutions and make a commitment to seeing them to completion. Make your first resolution this year to draw up sensible and achievable ones. Resolve to make this year different.