New Year, New Goals

It's the first full work week of the new year. For most it's a mere continuation of the previous year. According to Statistic Brain, 45% of Americans make New Year's Resolutions.

Only 8% actually achieve them.

The definition of resolution is: A firm decision to do, or not to do something.

The definition of goal is: Something you are trying to do or achieve.

Clearly, resolutions and goals are very similar; however, making the decision to do (or not to do) something, and trying to do something, are different.

Only 8% of people achieve their resolutions because they don't transpose their resolutions to goals. In other words, move from deciding to doing.

In order to do that, you must have both focus and goals. There are many reasons to have goals, and chief among them is the focus that merely having goals will provide. Of equal importance, but typically overlooked, are micro goals. These are the daily objectives, identified as immediate short-term goals, that enable you to reach your ultimate long-term goal.

Since losing weight is the top goal that most people set, we can see how having a daily objective of eating better (i.e., lower calorie intake), and exercising frequently, would enable one to reach the long-term goal of losing weight. How much weight specifically you would want to lose, can benefit from S.M.A.R.T. goals, as can all of the goals you are trying to achieve.

Goals are significant as they relate to growth; they enable us to move beyond complacency and stagnation by making us conscious of where we are...providing us with incentive to do what's necessary today, to get to where, and what we want to be tomorrow.

Happy New Year!