New Year’s Resolutions Don’t Have to Suck

by JC on December 23, 2009

In just a few days, many of us will be drinking the bubbly, stuffing ourselves silly and counting down the minutes as we head into the New Year. As I get older, I find it depressing how fast the time flies and it seems as if only yesterday I recorded my 2009 New Year’s Resolutions in my journal.

If you take a look around the internet, as well as other media outlets, you’ll notice the most popular New Year’s Resolutions are the same every year. Most of these resolutions are the same time and time again. A few of the more popular resolutions are to ‘lose weight’, ‘get out of debt’, ‘exercise more’, ‘eat more healthy food’, ‘go back to school’, ‘get a better job’, etc. The list goes on and on and on.

In light of the New Year and the many resolutions you may commit to, I want to leave you with a few do’s and don’ts that will help your adherence well into 2010 when the once new commitments are not so fresh and attractive anymore.

In short, for most people, this time of year sucks because they make all these awesome plans only to fail at all of them. Just look at the number of health club sign-ups every January.

Why Your New Year’s Resolution Sucks

When you’re contemplating the ideas and goals you wish to build upon as you fly into the new year, it’s important to remember the importance of simplicity and minimalism. Nothing will kill your motivation and adherence like an overly complex set of goals and rituals you’ll most likely abandon within a few weeks.

I see it all the time. Someone has a wonderful idea to get back in shape and lose all the weight they gained in the past year by the end of January. This is a recipe for physical and mental disaster – just read this female’s story.

Or, they decide to take complete control of their time by reorganizing their schedule and optimizing every single minute of their day. Before you know it, all they’re doing is managing their time, and reading all the books and blogs about time management. As a result, they are failing to actually get anything accomplished.

Another example is the person who decides to make a drastic 180 degree change. They go from their normal American diet full of Cheez Whiz and processed greatness to a vegan or Paleo-style diet overnight. Instead of taking a moderate approach that allows for some flexibility and transition, they jump in with both feet first, become obsessive and fail a week later. The cycle continues.

The previous examples rehash only a few stories of the obsessed and rigid crowd. We should also take a look at the complete opposite – the person who just fails to make any plans or New Year’s Resolutions at all. I think it’s obvious, but the person who fails to plan is planning to fail (cliché, but true). Without any goals to work toward, what’s the point of our existence?

New Year’s Resolution Do’s and Don’ts

Here are just a few ideas to ponder over the next few days as you plan out all you wish to accomplish over the next year.

Pick only a handful of goals – It’s more important to choose 3-5 things to work on over the New Year as opposed to 10-20. Whatever you set your sights on, you can accomplish; however you must be focused and diligent. Nothing kills momentum like having 20 things to do as it’s overwhelming, daunting and fosters an unproductive environment.

DO: Pick a few goals to work on.
DON’T: Bite off more than you can chew – it’s a recipe for disaster.

K.I.S.S. – It stands for keep it simple, stupid. Simplicity and minimalism are very important aspects of reaching one’s goals, whether they are short or long term. How many times have you mapped out or looked at an overly detailed plan only to become discouraged and hopeless? Probably more times than you can count. It’s very important to set your objectives and let the details develop as you go. Don’t worry about the minutiae at first; it’s only important you get started. Sometimes, taking that initial step requires the simplest of plans.

DO: Make your plan/approach simple.
DON’T: Get caught up in all the details because you’ll figure them out in time.

Allow for some screw-ups – If you’ve read my ebook, you know all about this already. You’re never going to be perfect. You’re never going to get everything right. The most important part of your road to success, especially in this fitness and body composition world, is to know that nothing is ever going to be perfect. You must allow time in your schedule for some errors. Sometimes that cake is too good to resist or your alarm clock breaks. Sometimes you drop your pancakes on the floor and your cat eats them (true story). It’s okay; call it a day and move on.

DO: Give yourself permission to screw up now and again.
DON’T: Obsess or worry about that slice of pizza you ate – I’m sure you enjoyed it, right?

Sometime in January, I’ll publish an article, most likely titled Goal Setting 101. In this article, I’ll be going into depth on how I feel about setting goals and what it takes to accomplish them.