Get Good with your New Year’s Resolutions

Another year has passed and it is that time again to write down yet another list of resolutions for the new year that most of us will not even follow. That being said, here are ways on how one can successfully complete one’s New Year’s resolution this time around.

1. Divide and Conquer

       Big goals are common in resolutions. Goals like “Papayat or Tataba ako this year” or “Tatangkad ako this year” are prone to not being kept just like false promises from your significant other. The reasons for these could be forgetfulness, lack of support, or getting overwhelmed. One great solution to solve this is to divide a resolution into smaller, more manageable goals. If a person divides a resolution into a monthly or even a weekly goal, then there is a high chance of that commitment being completed by the end of the year if they are committed enough. However, there are some resolutions that are impossible to complete, just like getting taller. Unless you get some kind of surgery on your legs, you are, apparently, stuck with your height.

2. Be S.M.A.R.T.

       A person’s resolution should be specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-sensitive. Those who want to follow through with their resolutions should be smart about it. New Year’s resolutions are not just some ordinary list of things you want to do this year. It is a covenant between you and the better you. So, be specific with what you want to change or what you want to learn—make them quantifiable by using numbers and percentages. Have them be actually attainable unlike trying to get taller, make them a part of your lifestyle, and give all your resolutions a deadline.

3. Record and Journalize

       Writing down a specific list of monthly or weekly goals related to your resolutions is a big help to their completion. Physically seeing a checklist would not only force you to complete it within a given time frame, but would also provide you the satisfaction of seeing the progress you have made so far. However, to do so, said checklist must be sturdy enough to survive one whole year. One way to protect it is to actually laminate the list and stick it somewhere you would always look at like the door of a fridge, a study table, or even the wall beside your bed. To update the laminated list, simply use a marker and write what you want to add. If you want to use it as a trophy if you are really proud of your accomplishments, simply remove the marker stains with alcohol and frame it for everyone to see.

4. Have a resolution competitor

       There is nothing more motivating than to have someone with the same goal compete against you. Although it is not required, getting someone to call your adversary in a race to get good is a great way of forcing you to follow through with your new year’s resolutions. Healthy competition, just like in business and industry, encourages you to become smarter than your competitors in achieving a goal. Besides bragging rights, the person who gets to complete his or her resolution before the other would have the benefit of actually getting physically fit, more talented, or better than he or she was before. One would also have the satisfaction of being considered the most disciplined and committed among the rest. That being said, being toxic about one’s achievements is bad.

5. Audit your resolution

       Get someone who is independent enough to provide you with reasonable assurance that what you have accomplished thus far has been in line with the standards and guidelines set by the contract between you and the better you. In other words, at the end of the year, have a family member or a close friend check if you have changed for the better and that the goals you have set on the first day of the year have all been accomplished, even if it is obvious. Make it a day of rejoicing. Not only are you celebrating a new year, but you are also recognizing the sacrifices you have made for the past 12 months of improving yourself as well.

       2020 has been a time of great tribulation since the Spanish Flu of 1918 and even the Black Death. People are hoping that next year would be better and this is what makes the new year’s resolutions of everyone this coming 2021 more significant and memorable.  The word “change” is even more powerful and is filled with meaning than ever before. It is about time that everyone actually follows through with their new year’s resolution this time. 2021 is the start of a new decade, so why not welcome it with the person that you want to become? Let your new year’s resolution be a symbol of you surviving 2020 and a contract between you and the better you to be someone who is greater than what you were during 2020. Let us hope with everything we have that next year isn’t the sequel or a spin-off of 2020. Happy 2021!

LAYOUT BY: Cristine Joie Q. Bacud

PHOTO SOURCE(S): Canva