Whatever you decided you were going to do at the stroke of Midnight, whether it was losing weight, give up smoking or building your company into a six-figure business, chances are that by February you will have given up, if not even sooner; you may even be reading this having thrown in the towel already!
The stats say that 80 percent of New Year’s resolutions have failed by the time we get to February, and it isn’t that surprising. Old habits are hard to break and new habits are difficult to form, and when things are hard, humans often give up. It doesn’t have to be that way though! If you have something you want to do (or stop doing) this year, you can be successful, especially if you do these things:
Small Steps
Instead of trying to completely transform your lifestyle from the get-go, break your resolution down into smaller steps. So, if for example, you want to break an addiction to drugs or alcohol, don’t go cold turkey, start by cutting down, then think about getting yourself into a sober living facility where you can learn the tools you need. Then slowly, you can change your brain and change your habits. This is a technique that works for almost anything, you just need to take out a sheet of paper, write down your resolutions and then break them into smaller chunks that will help you to get where you need to be in the end.
Tell People
If you tell people about your plans to lose 30 pounds or get serious about your business, you will be accountable and you will be more likely to stick to your goals because well the alternative would be telling friends, family, and followers that you have given up, and that would be worse than putting the effort in, right?
Go Easy on Yourself
Of course, that doesn’t mean that you should beat yourself up if you miss a few sessions at the gym or you neglect to work on that marketing pitch for your company, for example. Most of us are not perfect and we will not stick perfectly to our resolutions from day one until we reach our goal. That’s okay. As long as we are doing the right things more often than not, we will get there in the end. If you are too hard on yourself you’re more likely to give up completely labeling yourself a failure, and that would be worse than taking a few missteps on your journey to a better you!
Seek Support
Some resolutions. Such as breaking an addiction or building your business into a multi-million dollar company, are harder to achieve than others, which is why you should never be too embarrassed to seek help and support with them. If you know that your journey is going to be a hard one, it makes sense to get all of the help you can. A good mentor will give you the tips you need to succeed and a good friend will give you a shoulder to cry on when you’re finding it hard, and you will be stronger as a result. There are fantastic people out there willing to help you, so use them!