How to Make a New Year's Resolution and Keep It

Here we go again, another year and another stack of resolutions down the proverbial drain. No, not this year, all excuses have expired. This time will be different. Now, you have a plan that works.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Things You’ll Need:

• Drive, determination, stamina and focus

1. Start with the principle that one and only one resolution at a time is required. Trying to quit drinking, lose weight and stop smoking at the same time would be ridiculously aggressive. Take the one thing that is most critical to your health and well being and tackle it first.
2. Break the change down into small manageable steps. Use a graph, pareto chart or other visual manifestation of the tasks you will need to accomplish to reach your goal. And be realistic about it. Fifty pounds in fifty days will land you in the hospital if you are foolish enough to starve yourself to succeed. If you have a large weight loss, think of your success as a three-stage process. In the first quarter of the new year, you will achieve one third of the loss (i.e. 20 lbs.), the second quarter will be the next 20 and by the end of September, you will achieve the total loss. Or, you can focus on the number of hours of exercise instead.
3. See it as you do it. Visualize the end result. There is no big "secret" relative to the attraction theory that you can achieve what you want by focusing on it, visualizing the goal and as a result, motivating your actions to achieve it. Put pictures of yourself – at your healthiest weight – everywhere. Think about it all the time. Use motivational audiotapes to repeat the message. “I will achieve my goal”. Whatever your goal may be.
4. Tell other people and ask for their help in accomplishing your objective. Ask her not to tempt you if you are trying to lose weight and see if she will agree to work out with you at the gym 2-3 night per week if possible. You can renew an old friendship or find a new buddy to help motivate you to change your habits.
5. If you don’t feel like working out, or you want you eat that donut, don’t allow yourself to make those old, familiar rationalizations. As soon as you hear those excuse tapes playing in your head, shut them down and throw them out with the trash.
6. If you do have a moment of weakness and slip up a bit, that’s okay, you are human. Forgive yourself, and the very next day, work twice as hard on your goal, strengthening your resolve even more.
7. Have faith in yourself. You can do anything if you set your mind on that goal. Remember that it is never too late to become what you might have been.

Tips & Warnings

• Just do it.