The Art of Making Resolutions.

New Year’s is a great time to think about your resolutions for the year ahead. It’s a time to pause, reflect, and consider what changes you want to make moving forward. There’s something about that feeling of “the start of a New Year" that makes us feel like change is possible – which is a great thing. But I think it’s really important to remember that it’s also okay to not wake up on the first of January full of motivation and 100% drive to leap out of bed straight into a “new year, new me” mindset. And guess what – it doesn’t have to all be decided by the time the clocks strike midnight on New Year’s Eve.

A much healthier approach to the new year – and to setting goals – is to think of the whole of January as the start of the New Year. It’s a nice time after the chaos of Christmas to unwind a little, take some time for yourself (if you can) and consider what realistic goals and resolutions can look like for you throughout the year. Resolutions are a great tool for us to use though so I wanted to share my tips to consider if setting your own.

1. Don’t have more than five.
   Some people will probably think this is an absurd number, but for the over-achievers out there, this one’s for you. If you are going to have five make sure at least two of them are fairly small and easily achievable. This isn’t to minimise what you can accomplish, but it’s really important to be realistic and stay focused – too many goals can easily become overwhelming and harder to stick to. These goals and resolutions should also be staggered across the year as things to work towards at different stages rather than a tick list that you have to have checked off by the end of dry Jan.
   

2. Be specific.
   A good example of this is a typical resolution of “I need to lose weight.” This is too generic and harder to always track. Instead of losing weight, a better goal would be to “eat a well-balanced and nutritional diet” or “to do 3 exercise classes a week” or perhaps “give up alcohol for three months.” All of these things would contribute to weight loss through a healthier lifestyle, but are much clearer and more specific goals that will give you your desired result. On a side note, be mindful of how you track weight loss, especially if you plan to start working out more. When I ran the marathon I was the fittest, strongest and healthiest I’d ever been – but guess what, the scales said I weighed over 6kg more than when I’d been at my ‘smallest.’
   

3. Keep them varied.
   Don’t make everything just about running marathons, starting a business, learning a language or going back on hinge. These things are great, but it’s also important to consider what sort of person you want to be and what you can do to help you achieve that – do you really need to spend more time in the gym or do you need to get consistent with your bible? (Follow a Temple plan and you’ll have the perfect balance for both!) Maybe you’re someone who struggles to have patience for others (guilty!!) and actually having a resolution around practicing patience would bring a positive change. Or maybe you just need to be intentional about quality time with a certain friend, a partner or your kids, where you feel a restored relationship is in need.
   

4. Share your resolutions with someone.
   You can’t talk about goals without talking about accountability. Sharing our goals and desires with someone we know who cares about us gives them permission to keep us on track. They can remind us why we started in the first place and give us a reality check when we need it! Trust me, when I gave up drinking for 6 months telling people was the biggest reason I was able to stay on track on those harder days. Plus, you never know how sharing your goals might inspire someone else with theirs – win, win!

And last but not least, my final point: If having even just one goal this year is too hard and too much and you just need to focus on getting through each day, then that is totally ok. Goals and resolutions are tools, but they are not the most important thing. The MOST important thing to know going into any year is that you are SO loved, and that there IS a plan for your life which has already been written. Maybe this year instead of a resolution, you just need a resolve to believe in that even when it feels hard to.

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” – Jeremiah 29:11