How to Keep New Year’s Resolutions
12/30/2013
New Year's Resolutions: Looking to make changes in the New Year?
Most everyone would like to make changes in their life. It’s hard to do. It’s even harder when we pick a specific date like the beginning of the New Year to make drastic changes in the way we live. We say, “I want to lose weight”. “I want to quit smoking.” “I want to exercise more.” Yet such goals are often nearly impossible to follow through on — for seniors and all ages alike — unless one has a solid and smart plan in place. The website hebrewseniorlife.org explains that in several of their evidence-based programs, they use a goal planning system known as SMART, meaning that goals should be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and time specific in order to achieve life changing goals.Goals/Resolutions should be "SMART":
Four additional suggestions to keeping New Year’s Resolutions:
- Aim low. Don’t set your goal so high it will be unachievable by pretty much any human. Instead of trying to lose 20 pounds in a month, for example. Shoot for 10 pounds in three months. It’s more realistic.
- Don’t take on too much. Instead of selecting 5 New Year’s resolutions, choose one and stick with it.
- Tell everyone you know about your resolution. They’ll provide encouragement and help you along. Life changes are hard to accomplish, but they’re even harder to do alone.
- Reward yourself. Pat yourself on the back or treat yourself to something you like when you reach levels toward your goal. If you’re trying to lose weight, for example, reward yourself for each pound lost. And whatever you do, don’t get upset if it goes the other way and you gain a pound. Just keep working on it. Don’t give up.