articles: What's Yours?
Another Take on New Year's Resolutions

Yep, it's that time again, time to drag out the new year's resolution and tell ourselves that this year I really am going to do it, THIS is the year. How would you like it if it really was the year, if this New Year heralded in a new beginning in a particular area of your life, or maybe even two?

Where does the tradition of new year's resolutions come from? Well the Babylonians celebrated New Year's Day over four thousand years ago with the belief that what a person did on the first day of the new year would have an effect throughout the entire year. Somehow this became reflected in the idea of a resolution for the new year, something that could be a focus or goal for the coming year. All those years ago these beliefs held a great power for people and resolutions were deeply thought out, each individual making a personal vow to themselves. Nowadays the new year's resolution has become part of the party tradition for a lot of people and therefore they hold little or no power, there is no energy to help us commit to our resolution and so they get broken, forgotten, left behind as the year progresses.

The New Year is a great time to make resolutions - the Babylonians knew what they were doing. At specific times in the year whether they be solstices or new year's - and remember there are many new year's - Gregorian, Chinese, Muslim, Jewish, Indian to name a few - a collective 'energy of change' is heightened. If we take the opportunity of this collective energy and make a personal commitment for change then we use this energy for our personal transformation.

So with this in mind the first question is "do I really want to make a resolution?" Take some time to ask yourself this question. It may seem too simple but it is the key to success. If you make a resolution simply because it is the done thing and everyone else you know does it then your motivation for success is zero. You need to really want to make a resolution for it to be effective in your life.

Ok, so you've decided that you do want to make a resolution. The next thing is to write it down, draw it, sing it - I don't care - just animate it! Articulate it in any way that brings it alive for you. Remember, these things are personal, keep them that way. One rule of success is to only share your resolutions, your goals with people who will support 100%. By this I mean that they do not question the goal nor your ability to reach the goal and they support you in all ways possible to succeed. This entails emotional, physical and mental support. They are cheering you 100%. Only ever share your personal goals with people who will support you like this.

Once you have your goal clear in your mind you now need to set out a specific plan for you to reach your goal. It doesn't matter what the goal is and that is why I am not going into details, the process is the same for any resolution, any goal. Goals can sometimes seem unobtainable, unreachable, undoable because they seem like a huge mountain standing in front of us. We can hardly see the top of the mountain and sometimes it feels like those times when we climb and think we've just reached the top only to find that it was a false peak and that there is still much more to go.

The solution to this is to break the goal down in to achievable steps and also identify all and any resources we may need to help us along the way. We often forget that when setting goals in our lives that we can bring in outside support and help. Nobody says that you have to do this alone. No one said that you cannot do some research to find out what is available to help you. A crucial part of succeeding with our goals is to arm ourselves with as much help and information that we can muster, to stack the odds in our favour.

So, take a piece of paper and write the following

Intention:
State your resolution. I want to ………… … … … Make your goals SMART. Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Timed. In this way you become very clear as to what you want to achieve, with clarity comes success.

Needs:
List all the resources you may need e.g. help, advice, finance, support, premises - all the things that you can think of. You may add to this list as and when things come up. Next to each need write where you think you can access these resources and how you will go about the process of securing them. Note that one part of this list is the people (or person) you decide to tell about your goal. Actively enlist their help and support whether it be emotional, physical or mental.

Method:
Once you've identified the resources you need you can then decide what steps you need to take to reach the target. List them in order. This is the process of breaking down the insurmountable mountain into easy stages.

Review:
Give yourself some realistic deadlines. Decide on certain dates to check your progress and write them in your diary. This will help you stay focused and keep your resolve on the goal

Flexibility:
As you go through the steps to your goal note any changes that become needed as you move forward. This is your flexibility column. Be prepared to adapt your plan so that you can respond creatively to change instead of being put off by the first challenge.

Successes:
Here is your personal cheerleader! Write down all your successes, however small you may think them to be. Acknowledge yourself on a daily basis for what you have achieved. Some days you may feel that you have achieved nothing but - even if it is only opening up the page to write something down - that is an achievement, it means that you are still committed to your goal and on days when it seems challenging that is truly a success.

And lastly, have fun with this, life is a journey full of goals and resolutions but it is also full of fun and laughter. The purpose of our resolutions is make our lives easier, as in more ease, and therefore I believe that the process should be light and bring us joy and the feeling of excitement and achievement. Enjoy the journey…

Previously printed in Nerja Essential Jan 2004

Life & Lifestyle:

• My Life Doesn’t Fit Anymore

• Fulfilment – The Key To Our Happiness

• One Inspired Thought

• The Law Of Attraction

• Motivation

• No Points of Reference

• What's Yours? Another Take on New Year's Resolutions

• Been There, Done that...

• Colouring Over the Lines

• Welcome to Paradise

• Life What?

Relationships:

• Good Healthy Relationships

• Happy Valentine's Day

Career:

• Who’s Stopping You?

• Visualisation – The Career Turbo Charger

• Overcoming The Hurdles When Changing Career

• Let’s Look At Finances

• Keeping a Positive Focus