Salvaging Your New Years Resolutions

Do you make New Years resolutions, resolutions to make you happier, healthier, perhaps a better person or similar? Many people do, but unfortunately many people abandon them within a few weeks. There are many reasons for this, the biggest one being unreasonable expectation or goals, and most resolutions should be salvaged instead of abandoned.

Let’s say for example your resolution centers around getting fit and losing weight, excellent goals for most of us. Too many people make unrealistic goals, such as losing 75 pounds before summer time and going to the health club five times a week. Unrealistic goals can lead to abandoning your resolution entirely and seeing no benefits at all.

Of course you should set reasonable goals, but in reality many of us do not. Maybe we are moved by the excitement of the New Year, or maybe a glass of Champagne and camaraderie, and certainly by a hefty dose of positive thinking. So what can you do now that your resolutions have been made and it’s a few weeks into the New Year? There are several things.

I usually leave unreasonable goals intact, but set my expectations appropriately. Stretch goals are fine as long as you realize that only in a perfect world will you make them, and missing your goals is not failure if you have moved in the correct direction and made positive changes. For example my resolution was to lose 50 pounds before I am 50 years old, which gives me 7 months. This is certainly possible, although I’ve never done it before, and I simply set my expectations to understand that even losing 20 pounds is enormous success, not failure.

Of course you can also reset your goals to some that are easier and more likely to be reached. Certainly surpassing your goals is not an issue! For example I might have reset my goal to lose 20 pounds or more by my birthday.

Another form of resetting resolutions involves expecting only some significant positive change. This removes the pressure of absolute metrics, and only involves positive changes. These should be easier to achieve and once achieved can be used to springboard using your positive momentum to greater results.

One of my favorite techniques involves setting three sets of goals. The first is your minimum goal, one you can almost certainly reach. Your second goal is one that is possible unless you have some unforeseen setbacks which are always possible. Your third set is your “stretch goals,” the ones you could achieve in a perfect world. Sometimes the world is perfect and you just might make them! For example if your goals involve weight loss, your goals might be loosing 10 pounds, 20 pounds, or 50 pounds by summer. 10 pounds is very probable if you try, 20 pounds is doable, and with some perseverance and luck you might even lose 50 pounds.

It is also important to remember that most people will commonly have setbacks at some point, and these are normal. These are no reason to abandon your resolutions!
New Years resolutions can bring about very positive change! You may need to reset expectation if you were initially too ambitious, and also remember that setbacks are normal and no reason to give up.