Broken New Years Resolutions - What Now?

The third week of January and today it feels like winter has arrived.   A beautiful bright sky but freezing❄

Do you make New Year’s Resolutions?

Did you make any New Years Resolutions this year?  I don’t make them and haven’t for a while now.  Instead, I focus on setting intentions and goals for the year. This will involve a time of reflecting on what I achieved/completed last year and thinking where I want to be by the end of this year.

Several of my goals and intentions are the same or similar to those last year.  This does not mean I did not make any progress – far from it – but it does mean they are areas in which I want to continue to grow and develop further.  I then “reverse engineer” the goals – i.e. break down into smaller actions that make them feel within reach.  Small steps over time take you where you want to go.

“What have I achieved in 2019 that I want to carry into 2020?”

How are your resolutions going?

As it’s the third week of the New Year many people will start to feel like they have already failed with their New Years Resolutions and this is partly why I don’t set them.  Resolutions tend to be absolute and therefore difficult to stick to.  With intentions/goals its more focused on progress.  It’s good if they can be measurable in some way so you can easily see the progress made, but they can be less tangible.

The other main difference is that resolutions tend to be made on the 1st January when, I don’t know about you, but life is still not back to a normal routine.  I tend to think about my goals in December/January and then I have eased into them as life has got back into a normal rhythm.  I knew what they were, broke them down a couple of weeks ago and then it is only last week and this that I have started implementing the steps I want to take. 

There’s so much pressure on us to set resolutions and to hit the ground running in January, and while that may be fine for some people, for me I need a gentler start to the year.  Without the pressure of feeling I’m behind already so it’s not worth starting😮. 

Don’t give up on your resolutions - reframe them instead.

If you’re feeling like you’ve failed with your resolutions already have another look at them and see if you can change them to intentions. For example – if you made a resolution to work out 4 times a week why not change it to an intention to be more active for the whole year. Rather than giving up on the resolution you can gradually add to your activity levels making it a more sustainable and achievable goal. 

One of my intentions is to enjoy cooking nourishing meals and one of the steps is to try a new recipe every week.  As of today, I have not tried any new recipes but rather than think of that as a failure it’s just a step I haven’t implemented yet.  We’ve been trying to use the food we already have in the freezer so other than the usual perishable items I am yet to do a full shop this year. Mother Hubbard has now moved in so I can’t put it off any longer and I will plan which recipe I’m going to do before I write my list.

Alter your perspective.

Any resolutions you set were obviously around areas important to you, so instead of giving up, try reframing them.  This way you will still make progress towards your goals and who knows where you could be by the end of 2020. Be positive - take action that your future self will thank you for.

For things to consider when making your goals see “Reaching Your Goals: Questions to ask on the Way”

“thoughts lead to actions, action leads to outcomes.”