What’s the Secret to Keeping Your New Year’s Resolutions?
It’s that time again… time to set your New Year’s Resolutions.
For those who know me, I’m totally into goal setting. In fact, every December my wife and I slip away for a weekend to set up our next year. We take two full days and set goals in every aspect of life:
- Personal Development
- Family and Friends
- Professional Achievements
- Financial
- Health and Fitness
- Spiritual
I know many people set goals. But how many actually keep them? Very few.
You see, most people quit on their Resolutions by the end of January. I believe there’s a reason for this. Let me explain.
For any of you who are “gym rats”, you know that during the first month of the year it’s in your best interest to stay clear of your gym. You do home workouts, go for runs, or take bike rides; anything other than go to the gym!
Why?
Because the gym’s packed! Everyone piles into the gym as part of their “resolution” to get in shape.
But what I find fascinating is that the gym empties out by January 31st. And the ones still standing are the same regulars who have been there the rest of the year.
The reason this happens is the same reason most other New Year’s Resolutions fail. It has to do with people’s mindset.
You see, the folks who raid the gyms and then quit do so because they only focus on what to “DO”. They’ve neglected a key motivator behind achieving their goals. That’s deciding on how they want to “BE”.
Achieving something great follows this equation:
BE + DO = HAVE
- Be – This is referring to your mindset.
- Do – The actions you take.
- Have – The results you will receive.
Think about it. If you go to the gym and your mindset is, “I’m still overweight. This isn’t working. This is so hard,” the odds are pretty good that you’ll quit on your goal. This type of mindset negates the action being taken.
But if your mindset is, “I’ve still got a long way to go. But I enjoy coming to the gym, I’m making progress, and I’m gonna do this!” your odds of success just skyrocketed!
When it comes to goals, our mindset almost always determines how successful we will be. Our chance for success is much greater if we choose a positive mindset – a “BE-coming” before a “DO-something.”
When you align your “Be” with your “Do” you will give yourself the best chance for making 2017 your best year yet.
