New Year Resolutions, an essential part of life

New year is a new beginning. The earth begins a new revolution around the sun. A new cycle of four seasons begins. It is also the end of the previous full cycle of last year. It seems naturally the appropriate time to make plans and to set goals for the new year. Yes, we revisit those lofty goals that have been carried over from last year, or probably the year before like getting back in shape, loose that extra weight, run a marathon, paying off debts, adopt a vegan diet, .... It is a moment of disappointment, guilt, or shame to find ourselves at the same point as we were at the beginning of last year when we had made there's resolutions with great enthusiasm, optimism, and determination.

After a few years of unrealized resolutions, many of us lost faith in the whole process and threw in the towels. Well, well, well, this year might just be unlike any other year before, it is going to be a B.Y.E. for you (Best Year Ever.) This article will inspire you to dust out these old worthy goals and tack them from a new mind set, with a new approach.

First and foremost your lofty goals and resolutions are representative of a better version of yourself, they are stepping stones of the person you aspire to become and the life your dream to live. To abandon these dreams is to let yourself down, and to give up on your life. And your dreams don't materialize because, based on the words of the legendary business coach Stephen Covey: they are important yet not urgent. To realize your resolutions requires sustained efforts over a long stretch of time. As often enough, our efforts get derailed by the hustles bustles of everyday life that are usually urgent and numerous.

This is the time to call upon our divine right to the power of creativity: the innate ability to produce or use original and unusual ideas. It has been said "A better way to predict the future is to create it." Let's hold this thought close to our heart: creativity is not a power destined for artists, scientists, inventors, or elitists.

Creativity is built-into the human DNA, it provides us the ability to create a meaningful future under unpredictable circumstances, instead of being subject to the randomness of life.

The Tweaks 

A few years back, I started to make new year resolutions and have enjoyed some success with reasonable efforts. I would like to share with you the process I have been using for making No-Fail New Year Resolutions:

Step 1: Always have at least 3 or more new years resolutions–one for each of the following three categories: “One-Shot-Deal”, “For Starter”, “The Elephant”.

1. “One-Shot-Deal" (super easy): this is a one-time, easy-to-do activity, or place to visit that you have been think to check it out but can’t seem to find the time or the occasion to get around to it, e.g. see a ballet, or check out that new gym, or try out an acting class,…. It is best to be something, or place, or activity that is new to you that does not require much time, or money, or repeated effort to accomplish. Just-Do-it! And get it out of the way.

2. ”For Starter“ (start something new): this is a new hobby you have been wanting to try out, or a new skill you want to learn, good examples are joining a book club, joining Toastmasters to improve your public speaking, learn to skate, sign up for a workshop for beginner runners, …. In general, this category includes all completely new activities that you will start doing on a recurring basis. The idea is to start doing them and see if it they will stick, and that’s alright if you would eventually drop out, you will still benefit from exposure to these completely new horizons. The main idea is to Start Now! Stop anytime you want! It would be wise to start activities that do not require making a commitment of large resources upfront, and to reserve the right to cancel at anytime without penalty.

3. ”The Elephant“ (the impossible goal): This is the classic unattainable new year resolution that you either never got around to even start or that you have been failing year after year, for examples: to stop smoking, losing weight, get back into shape, save more money,…. This is the Elephant in the house–this type of resolutions is about the changes that we want to see in ourselves or in our lives, and as we grow more experienced in life, we come to the realization that change is extremely difficulty, if not, nearly impossible, hence the label "The Elephant” serves as a reminder. Now, have you ever came across this classic question: how do you eat an elephant?… Answer: “One bite at a time." Considering the immense challenge that we are facing here, it is absolutely essential to begin with the preparation of a plan of attack before engaging in an uphill battle. We will also need to recruit supporters, form alliances, gather information and rounding up resources. Next, we will need to decide on the size of "the first bite” that we are going to undertake this year: a bite-size between 5% and 10% is a wise choice (let’s again remind ourselves that this is an immensely difficult challenge we are tackling.) For examples, if the goal is to lose 30 pounds, let set our first “bite at this Elephant” to be 3 pounds and to stay at the new weight level for the rest of the year. It is important to stress that for a change to stay permanent, it need to be gradual and non-taxing on your resources to the point where you would hate and dread every moment working on it.

Step 2: Review your progress each month. These reviews are absolutely essential to keep you on track and to determine if adjustment is needed. Also keep record of the resolutions of previous years, they will help you to see more clearly of your accomplishments and progress over the years.

Step 3:  It is absolutely essential to give yourself a performance review at the end of the year. Here is when you will be pleasantly surprised with how successful you are at accomplishing your resolutions. First, it requires very little effort to achieve your “One-Shot-Deal” which represents a 33% success. Next, if you did put in just a little bit of effort you would have no difficulty accomplishing your  "For Starter", and that would put you at a 66% success level. Now, I must say the chance of success for  "The Elephant" is pretty low because it requires a lot of time, huge efforts, and a strong commitment. If you succeed then it is a cause for celebration, if not don’t beat yourself up since most people don’t even get to give a shot at it, let alone not succeeding. You can certainly try again with a smaller “bite  size” or an improved battle plan. And let not loose the perspective that you are 66% successful at accomplishing your new year resolution. Every financial planer would be overjoyed with a 66% annual return on investment.

Extensions: Once you get the hang of this process, you will want to try to extend it, and one way is to have several “One-Shot-Deal” and several “For Starter” resolutions, that will provide you more opportunities to enrich your life. However, I firmly believe that there should only be ONE Elephant in the house at anytime. Another variation is to select your “One-Shot-Deal” and “For Starter” such that they will help to make it easier for you to tackle your “Elephant.”

And Beyond: Let’s say you are totally taken by this “No-Fail” New Year Resolution idea, you have made your resolutions for this year, and you have been actively working to make them happen. I am happy for you. At the least you will have a lot of fun experimenting with this process. Now, here is another thought to stretch your imagination muscles: what if you decide to make 10-year,  20-year, or 40-year resolutions?…. It is a ming-boggling idea, isn’t it? Is it possible?…. How does someone goes about it?…. Like you, I am pondering on these questions and don’t yet have a clear perspective to offer, instead, let me introduce you to this excellent article: “How Will You Measure Your Life?" by the late professor Clayton M. Christensen of Harvard Business School. Addressing the MBA class of 2010, professor Christensen offered insights drawn from his careers in the corporate and academia, and from his experience as a Rhode Scholar, and cancer survivor. He invited his students to apply their knowledge in business and management to the following questions: "First, how can I be sure that I’ll be happy in my career? Second, how can I be sure that my relationships with my spouse and my family become an enduring source of happiness? Third, how can I be sure I’ll stay out of jail?…”

A word of warning: it is long, moving, and well-written:   

How Will You Measure Your Life?

Are you feeling optimistic about your New Year Resolutions? I trust you will have fun experimenting, and will meet with some success. For serious and committed believers in the pursuit of “elephants”, I promise to write about more tweaks based on B. J. Fogg’s “Tiny habits.”

A final word from John Lennon: 

“Life is what happens when you are busy making other plans”

To paraphrase Good Old John:

“Change is what happens when you are busy making new year resolutions”

Are you smiling yet?