The end of the year is time for introspection. We look back over the past year at our accomplishments, at what we wanted to do and didn’t get around to and what we still need to do. New Year’s resolutions, although great in
theory, usually don’t work out the way we want them to. By January 5^th, or maybe even the 2^nd, most people have given up on their resolutions, by January 30^th, they may not even remember what their resolution was.

The tradition of making resolutions dates back through the centuries. The tradition of breaking resolutions dates back just as far. The concept of looking back through your life to determine what areas need improvement is a noble one indeed. Striving to improve our lives, find more time for our family, relax more, exercise more, eat less, improve our health, stop smoking or find a new job are wonderful ways of creating a more fulfilling life. But making unrealistic resolutions can add stress and create feelings of failure and inadequacy.

Most resolutions fail because they are wishes. Without making a plan, and determining beforehand how the resolution will happen is simply making a wish. Somehow we believe in the magic of renewal, the magic that January 1 will provide us with the knowledge, the fortitude and the willpower to carry out our resolutions. Anytime else during the year, when looking to change our life and our behavior, we try to plan out how it may happen. If we are looking for a new job, we write our resume, we plan our strategy. But with New Year’s resolutions, we plan only for the magic of starting over to help us through.

Before setting your New Year’s resolution, take the time to follow some simple steps to help improve your chance of success.

1) Choose one goal to work toward. Don’t begin to list everything you want to change at once. Help yourself to stay focused by choosing only one.

2) Make a commitment to your goal. Acknowledge setbacks and promise yourself that a setback will not allow you to abandon your goal. Each Monday you will begin again as if it is New Year’s Day.

3) Break it down to manageable slices. Instead of choosing a resolution to keep for an entire year, why not set up small goals each month. Maybe your resolution can be that you will choose a goal at the beginning of each month to work toward. That way, you don’t have to imagine continuing toward the goal for 365 days, only for 30 days. If that is still too long, try for a goal each week. Whatever it may be, your first goal should be to make your goals attainable, not to set yourself up for failure.

4) Make a plan of action. Determine what you should do and when you should do it. Be prepared to alter some of your behaviors in order to make the change happen.

5) Put your plan in writing.

6) Send yourself reminder notices. Buy postcards and write one out to yourself for each month. Ask a friend to put one in the mail at the beginning of each month. You can also use free services on the internet to send yourself email reminders. Use your computer or PDA to set a reminder system.

7) Plan your rewards. There isn’t always much incentive on a daily basis to keep up with a change in behavior. Set up a reward system to help you going. Each day you follow your plan, put a dollar in a jar. Use the money to go out or buy something as a reward for following through.

8) Remember no plans are set in concrete. If you find yourself feeling like a failure because you can’t follow through, reevaluate your plan and your goals to make sure they are realistic.