How to Keep Your Resolutions

Many Americans will make Resolutions for 2013.  Few will keep them.  Our resolutions are always good in theory as they usually involve making our lives healthier, wealthier, and better in some form or fashion.  Nevertheless, we work towards them for a while and have usually given up by February or March.  There must be a better way and there definitely is.  I found a way to keep a vast majority of my resolutions for 2012.  Here is what worked for me in 2012.

1.  Be patient.  If you really want to take this seriously don't just randomly decide you want to do something.  Think about how you want to change your life for the better.  Think about it in the shower, on the toilet, driving in your car, laying in bed at night, and even set aside some time to just think.

2.  Don't call them resolutions.  I call them goals.  Call them plans, challenges, priorities, or anything else but resolutions.  People don't keep resolutions but they achieve goals, make plans, accept challenges...you get the point.

3.  Count your hats.   Not snapbacks and beanies.  Hats meaning all the roles that you play in your life. Yours will be different but here are 9 hats or roles that I use for the different areas of life:  Physical, Spiritual, Family, Husband, Father, Financial, Professional, Intellectual, and Personal.

4. Reflect.  As you think back on the year 2012, brutally evaluate yourself in each of these areas.  What went well?  What bombed?  What challenges did you face?  How can you improve?  What would you like to do differently?

5. Decide to be different.  After you've reflected, analyzed, and evaluated yourself in each area, decide how you would like to be different.  For me personally, I would like to be in better shape and health before my 30th birthday.  I would like my bank account to look differently.  I would like to be a better spiritual leader for my family.  Those are just a few.

6.  Find your WHY.  Each of these steps is important but I think this is where most people go wrong.  If you skip this step you don't have a reason to change.  Using my example, everyone would like to be in better shape and health.  But why?  For me, I want to feel better.  I want to have more energy to play with my son.  I want to be in shape to be able to better protect my family if necessary.  I don't want to buy new clothes because my current ones no longer fit.  Those are reasons.  Losing weight and eating better isn't attractive by itself.

7.  Develop a specific plan.  So you know what you want to do and you know why you want to do it.  How are you going to accomplish it?  How?  When?  Where?  With who? How often? With what?

My goal last year was not to lose weight, eat healthy, or get in better shape.  It was to complete the exercise program Insanity in the mornings.  I did it and I got the t-shirt!  Because of this, I did lose weight, eat healthy, and get in better shape because I had a specific plan of how, when, where, how often, and with what.

8.  Write it down.  As you write or type out your goals you'll be sealing them in your memory.  It will also allow you to do the next item on the list.

9.  Look at them often.  In order to keep them fresh on your mind, post them somewhere for you to see.  Bathroom mirror, inside your laptop, use them as a book mark, or do like my friend @chadmckamie and set them as a daily reminder on your phone so you see them every morning.

10.  Seek accountability.  There is power in saying your goals to a close friend or family member and asking them to remind you and encourage you of your goals throughout the year.

I hope this is helpful to you.  Again, this is what worked for me in 2012 as I achieved 13 of my 18 goals and I plan to use the same process for 2013.

Do you develop resolutions or goals?  How do you stick to them?