It is almost the end of the year, that time when we take stock and reflect on how we are doing, before laying out challenges or resolutions which we want to achieve in the coming year. Of all the people that make New Years’ Resolutions however, the large majority fail to deliver on what they have promised to themselves. To understand how we can be better at deliver our goals then, we must first identify some of the tricks and tips which we can use to help us get there. I spoke to my good friend and goal getter Mike Volitich, to get some hints on how you can achieve that goal which you have set out.
Reverse Visualization
The first step to achieving your goals is to imagine yourself achieving it, sit down, close your eyes and think hard about what that looks like. Once you have visualized the goal being achieved, work backwards to understand what kind of path you need to take in order to get there and think about what obstacles you may find along the way. In doing this you can mentally prepare yourself to go after your goal and you will also be able to plan for any pitfalls or challenges along the way.
No Failure
The biggest reason why most of us don’t achieve our goals is because we fail once and think that it is over. This is not the case at all and any journey to achieve a goal will be full of small failures. The number one rule which you need to have in your mind is that a failure is nothing more than a small setback and that if this happens, you need to get back to your plan as soon as possible. Take weight loss as an example, let’s say that you have a bad day, get home and eat everything that you find, the next day you have to forget about this and get back to your weight loss plan, rather than admitting defeat and then forgetting about your goal.
Sharing Your Goals
Friends and family should be used so that you can stay focused and motivated when it comes to achieving your goals. Taking the weight loss example again, if you were to tell your friends and family that you are trying to lose weight they will be able to support you by respecting that when making plans with you. Friends and family knowing about this will also ensure that you do not cheat when you are around them, this reverse peer pressure works very well when it comes to achieving your goals.
Reminders
A very simple trick which you can employ, regardless of what your goal is, would be to have visual reminders all over the place that will help you to remain focussed on the job in hand. Whether it be your wallet, the office or your study, put up visual reminders that will push you to remain focused on your goals.
Follow these tips and you will be able to smash those resolutions!
