"Although no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending." - Carl Bard

Serious question…

How many of you have already lost sight of your New Year’s Resolutions? I ask this question, because we are closing out March this week, and right about now is that moment each year where a majority of the population throws in the towel on their resolutions they were so intentional about at the beginning of January. 

We all have great intentions on January 1 each year. As Katy Milkman’s research shows, January 1 is the perfect day to turn over a new leaf and become the “you” you always wanted to be. It’s the day we begin our new diet to lose weight, we begin training for a marathon, or we quit smoking, drinking or procrastinating.

These are all excellent resolutions, but let’s dig into the reason why a very small percentage of us can make it to the end of the year following through with our commitments.

Think about it this way…

If you do not put some good thought and strategy into your New Years Resolutions, the results can be equated to running an unsuccessful marathon. Here’s how it goes:

JANUARY - You are sitting on the start line of your first marathon and your adrenaline is going WILD. You are nervous, you are excited, you are anxious…you have all the feels. In fact, because of this adrenaline rush, the gun goes off at the start line, and you are feeling great! This is easy peasy. There are hundreds of other runners who are in the pack and ready to power through this big accomplishment right alongside you. You are in great company!

FEBRUARY – Man, the pack is getting smaller and lonelier. Where did all the people go? It's not quite as fun to do this solo. Your adrenaline is wearing off a bit, but you are determined to keep going. The first bit of fear starts to rear its ugly head and the negative talk begins. “What if you don’t make it? What if you have to quit? How will quitting make you feel?” You tell the annoying voice to go take a hike and keep pushing forward...with slight hesitation.

MARCH – Oh, ugh! This is way harder than you anticipated. You have missed a few of the splits/times you were planning on hitting along the way and you are on a much slower pace than you had anticipated. You are only on mile 6, and you feel like you’re on mile 26. You think Whataburger or In-N-Out sounds WAY BETTER than finishing this marathon. “It was a bad decision to begin with,” you tell yourself. You slow to a walk and contemplate how you might be able to get out of finishing this race without feeling like a failure or anyone noticing.

APRIL – That’s it. You’re done. You’re on your way to Whataburger or In-N-Out. You convince yourself that it’s ok, and you’ll try again next year. You feel like you let yourself, and maybe others, down. 

Does this sound like you? Well, I guess the good news is that you’re not alone - you’re actually in great company with the majority of the United States population. Wouldn’t it be way more fun and rewarding to be in the minority, though? If so, read on.

Let’s take a look at what happened in the above analogy…

You set what we call a BIG HAIRY AUDATIOUS GOAL (BHAG) for yourself, but you forgot to train for it. Unfortunately, in your case, training for your BHAG is the most important part of the goal setting process, so if you leave out the process, you are simply setting yourself up for failure.

No one likes to fail, right?

Here is a step-by-step way to set yourself up for success:

Well? Are you ready? If you feel like you’ve gotten off track, as I always say, the best time to start is NOW, not tomorrow. I am here for you and ready to help you turn your dreams and goals into a success.

LET'S DO THIS!

In pursuit of successful goal setting,
Erin