Have you made any New Year's resolutions? Research tells us that most people who make resolutions forget all about them by mid-February and fall back onto their old habits. Life happens and many of us get discouraged or overwhelmed and lose sight of our goals. There are so many happenings that can get us off track. The year continues on, but our intended new behaviors fall by the wayside. So how can we avoid becoming a statistic and keep on track for our desired outcomes? Prepare now for the obstacles you will likely face. Start preparing for any possible obstacles which may get in your way and stay focused on the ultimate goal. Get an accountability partner to collaborate (and commiserate with) on a regular basis. Having someone who knows you are trying to change, respects your struggle, and wants to help you reach your goal can be the difference between staying on your path and veering off when things get tough. Select someone who is going through or has gone through the journey you are on and has been successful. Check in with this person at least once a week. Make a plan! Having a goal is important, but sometimes we don’t know how to reach that goal. This is why it is important to lay out a step-by-step plan for getting to the end goal. Then take it one step at a time. Mark a date for completion of each step on your calendar. If you do something toward your goal on a regular basis, maybe every Monday or three times a week, before long, your goal will be completed. Post reminders of your goal in many visual places; on your refrigerator, on your bathroom mirror, on the visor in your car, in your wallet, anywhere that you know you will see it regularly. In addition, find a picture of what your completed goal looks like and put it in a prominent place where you will see it often. Every time you see it, stop and tell yourself you can achieve it. Have fun pursuing your goal. Enjoy the short-term accomplishments of each step and celebrate even the smallest progress. When you have reached the designated calendar dates and you see you are right on track, put a gold star on that day on the calendar. Our subconscious mind likes rewards. Realize too, there are many rewards in learning new things, meeting new people, or gaining new insight and information while pursuing your goals. Sometimes, the journey is as fulfilling as the accomplishment of the goal. If you should get off track, don’t give up. Just consider it a detour and get back on the path. Life sometimes gets in the way and there are other priorities. Once you have taken care of whatever the distraction was, pick up where you left off and continue on. Quit being hard on yourself. Celebrate the fact that you are either starting to do something better or that you have stopped doing something that was detracting from your ideal life. Just take it one day at a time, one step at a time. You’ll be surprised at how soon you accomplish your desired outcomes and that your resolutions become reality.V
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