Its a new year, and a new you! Here’s the skinny on how to set a New Year’s resolution and make it successful!
Have you ever made a New Year’s resolution to get in better shape? You watch what you eat and exercise for a week and you imagine the new, fit you until you look in the mirror and look pretty much the same, followed by feelings of disappointment and discouragement?
When making your resolution, the first thing you want to do is make it realistic and be realistic about it. Things take time. Rome wasn’t built in a day and your resolution won’t be either.
Do these 5 things to set your resolution up for success:
Be specific
Make it measurable
Make it attainable
Be realistic
Set a time frame
Here is an example of using these 4 things when making your resolution.
Don’t: I will eat more vegetables (This is not specific enough nor is it measurable)
Do: I will eat 3 vegetables a day
Bonus: I will eat 3 vegetables a day which I will choose from this list of vegetables I like
Keep in mind when setting your resolution’s length of time, it takes a minimum of 21 days to start a habit. To be sure, set your length of time for longer (ie: 30+ days)
Here are a few ideas for family oriented New Years resolutions:
(personalize them and make them specific for your family)
Family game hour
Reading together before bedtime
Get outside together X number of times per week
One more tidbit to remember. Change is hard. Its new and it's uncomfortable. Family game night in your imagination will probably be different than family game night in reality. The first time you try this, it may be a total bust. Little Suzy might be frustrated that she doesn’t understand the game and little Johnny may cry if he loses, while your partner may feel bored and you feel like this was one big #fail. Expect that this might might happen, but keep up with it anyway. You're starting something new and it will feel more natural over time.
Happy New Year!