The tree is neatly put away, the treats have been gobbled up and the big man in safely back at the north pole for the year. Another Christmas season is behind us. You may be thinking now is the time to act. You may even be sitting down with a fresh notebook comparing gyms in your area. “The New Year, New Me” rush has probably already begun at your local fitness club. After-all, most gyms see about 13% of their total membership sales in these first few weeks of the year. Sadly though, 80% of those new members won’t even make it to the 5 month mark*, furthermore, 80% of all new years resolutions don’t see February and only 8% of people actually reach their goals. With numbers like this, it is no wonder that we are having trouble as a society in the health and wellness department.
You don’t need a new year or even a new day to make a change, you just need a new mindset to make a change. This year I am here to help you change your mindset and change the way you are setting goals. Here are a few easy steps to setting great goals for this year:
Resolutions
New years resolutions have been a common practice for over 4000 years, dating back to the ancient Babylonians**. They would celebrate the new year by making promises to the gods to repay their debts and be all around better humans. We have continued this practice through history, though we have made some significant changes through the years (Not really very good ones). The big difference that I want to point out here is that the Babylonians made promises to the gods. I don’t know about you but I am not about to make a promise to God that I don’t have every intention of keeping, I do however lie to myself all the time ( I will absolutely have the energy to clean the house when I get home from work right!?)
New Year’s resolutions are a pet peeve of mine. I hate them. There are just so many holes in the theory:
- No Accountability because you are promising yourself and normally tell no one
- No real thought or planning put in, they are usually made on a whim
- Come from External inspiration, not internal motivation
- Easily forgotten and looked over because you never write them down
- The list could go on but I won’t get on too much of a rant…
I bet this story will sound familiar:
It is the end of November and Jim is out doing his Christmas shopping. This will finally be the year that he has everything organized for Christmas before the Christmas rush sets in. No Last minute dad shopping here! He is so proud of himself. While shopping at the mall for his wife's gifts, he notices a booth set up for his local gym. The trainers are offering discounted memberships and training sessions to join. He notices that one trainer in particular looked so Jacked and good (something he has always wanted for himself). As Jim keeps shopping, sipping his Starbucks Mocha latte with 3 pumps caramel syrup and whip cream, he thinks to himself “I could get fit next year. I have been wanting to lose this beer belly I have been holding onto for 3 years” Right there he decides that his new years resolution will be to lose some weight. He keeps shopping.
Did I hit a nerve? Sound familiar? This is how 90% of people set their new years resolutions. And this is exactly why they don’t work. Step 1: Stop setting New Years resolutions!
How To Set Good Goals
A goal is a dream with a deadline. Setting good goals is important and though it may be an easy concept, it does take care and effort to do properly. You can not set good goals while also multi tasking at work or home or out with friends. Anything worth doing is worth doing right, so set aside some time, get yourself in a good mindset, grab a cup of coffee (Preferably without 3 pumps caramel syrup and whip cream) and really take the time to think about what you want to accomplish this year.
If Jim had said to himself “I really would like to lose some weight. When I get home I am going to set some time aside to set some goals around that” he would have a much better chance of accomplishing that goal. So Step 2 is to set time aside for your goal setting. Step 3 is to set SMART Goals!
S.M.A.R.T Goals
Do I have any Business School Grads in the house? If I do, you are probably already rolling your eyes at the heading of this Paragraph, but come on, the principle stands!
Setting S.M.A.R.T Goals is a strategy that I learned on my first day of college and it has stuck with me through the years as I have begun setting goals with my clients and also for myself. This acronym is easy to remember and straight forward to put into practice.
SMART Goals are great because they are conversation based. When I am setting a goal with my clients I always ask questions to be sure their goal is the right one for them. When you are setting goals for yourself this year, take the time to sit down and ask yourself these questions to help make sure you are setting good goals for the year and you will get to be part of that elite 8% who actually reach them!
S. Specific- What exactly does Achieving this goal look like? How does it feel? How will my life be different when I get there?
M. Measurable- How will I know that I have achieved my goal? What Milestones will I hit along the way?
A. Attainable- Is it realistic? Do I have the right support to reach this goal? What could stand in my way?
R. Relevant- Does this goal align with my values? Is it the right goal for me? Does it make sense for my life currently?
T. Time Sensitive- When can you expect to achieve this goal? Will I have Delays?
My Goals for 2023
You do not need to wait until the new year to set new goals. I began my goal setting for the year around the beginning of December which meant that I had 4 extra weeks for this year to reach them!
By using my SMART Goals format, I was able to set some great goals for Healthy Hicks, for my relationship, for work and every other aspect of my life.
If you have not noticed by now, I am a dreamer and a goal setter. I want to accomplish big things and I believe I can do it. So Goal setting is actually a really fun exercise for me. I know that this is not the case for everyone, but we can at least make it a little less daunting together.
One of my goals for this year for Healthy Hicks is to reach over 100 readers on a single post in the first half of the year. This goal is Specific (one single post), Measurable (100 People), Attainable (We are around 15 now and growing with each post), Relevant (If I want to grow this blog, I need more readers) Time Sensitive ( 1st half of the year).
For our friend Jim, When he sits down and actually sets some goals they could look like this:
“I want to lose 20lbs in 4 months by going to the gym 3x/ week and eating out once a month instead of twice a week”
Affirmations
Step 4 is to use affirmations to keep you on track and feeling confident. Since one of my goals for this year is to recognize when I am doing a good job by celebrating the small steps forward each day and week, I have decided to write down some affirmations for this year. Let’s dig into this a little bit more here.
I find affirmations and mantras very helpful. When I feel overwhelmed, out of control or like I am failing to achieve my goals, I can repeat my affirmation or mantra in my head or even out loud to help me find my way back to my path. On the other hand, when things are going well, I can repeat my affirmation to myself as a confirmation that I was right all along, and I am doing great!
Part of living your best life is believing that you are worthy of it and believing that you can do it. I would challenge the reader to think of a mantra that you can hold onto for the day and repeat it to yourself when you feel things are getting tough. Do this every day for 3 days and record how it impacted your day and your ability to be all you can be. I have a feeling it will make a big difference.
Today’s Affirmation for me is:
“You are not an old dog and you can learn new tricks. Focus and take a deep breath, you are doing fine”
Some other affirmations that I have been using include:
I love myself for all that I am, and all that I am not
I choose to be happy today and every day
I cheer for those around me because there is space for everyone to shine in our world
I know I can achieve anything I want in life because I am capable of greatness
I am worthy of love & kindness from those around me and will not accept anything less
I want to hear your affirmations! Share them with me in the comments section
You don’t need a new year or even a new day to make a change, you just need a new mindset to make a change. My prayer for you this year is that you will be able to set great smart goals and achieve all of the things you want to this year. And don’t be an island, reach out to us get help with your goal setting!
Leave us a comment below and tell us what is your top goal for 2023!?
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