It's the MOST wonderful time of the year...

It's the most wonderful time of the year... Really? 

I know I am not the only one who is crazy busy (and maybe a little stressed) right now. Right? We would all like to be able to relax about now. Who really has time to start thinking about 2022 right now? Your goals, your resolutions. If you're like me you are telling yourself right now, "Next year I am going to be better! I am going to be more organized and get all of this done sooner!" And there you have it, a sneak peek into my NEW YEAR RESOLUTION. 

Are you making a New Year Resolution this year? Millions of people around the world make resolutions each year. I am not here to talk you out of a resolution. I am here to help you be successful with your resolution in 2022.

Does your resolution sound something like...

"I am going to exercise more."

"I am going to save money."

"I am going to eat healthier."

These kinds of resolutions may not get you anywhere near what you actually want. To set a resolution that you will see some benefit from you should ask yourself one really tough question. What do you want? And then create a plan of action to get you there. Remember S.M.A.R.T. Goals? That is how you need to format your resolution. 

Do you want to be able to complete an athletic event; a 5K, a 10K, a Crossfit Competition, a Triathlon? 

Do you want to make a big purchase; a car, a house, college? 

Do you want to lose weight? 10lbs, 20lbs, more?

We could go on forever with questions to ask yourself, but I am sure you get the idea. The point is to set a resolution that you can actually see results from you will need to be specific. Determining how much money you want to save will give you a specific goal to reach towards. Then you can set measurable increments to reach that goal. 

Here's an example of how it might look if you are wanting to resolve to "Get more organized". 

Resolution tasks that will help achieve this resolution might look like: 

- Decluttering for 90 minutes each week. It can be 15 minutes 6 days per week, or 3 30 minute sessions, or even choosing one day to do the whole 90 minutes. 

- Pack up one area each week; can be a closet, a bookshelf, a cabinet, a room. Clean out the area and only return items to that area that work for you. Do not make space for items that do not bring you joy or are not useful. 

- Donating unused items to charity each month, or even each week if you find you have enough stuff to donate. 

Doing these three things throughout the year will bring the result of being more organized, but the actual resolution needs to be the actions. The result will not come without the actions. 

Here's an example of how it might look if you are wanting to resolve to "Be healthier".

- Drink your water; a gallon, 3 liters, 64 ounces, half your body weight in ounces (we know there's not really a magic number here, but making sure you're conscious of your water consumption keeps you from drinking sugary beverages & can even help with hunger). Pick an amount & just do it. But you've got to track it to know you've done it. 

- Move. Gift yourself a watch with a fitness tracker function. Get up and move. We also know there's no magic number of steps per day BUT we do know that the more you do move, the better off you will be. You don't know how much you are NOT moving until you start to measure it though. Make it a competition with yourself to be better each day!

- Track your food. Free apps like My Fitness Pal have changed the way we are able to track what we eat. We can get real information on how our food affects us instead of just a list on a page in a spiral.

Doing these three things all year long will definitely bring a healthier you at the end of 2022!

In the end you still need a way of knowing that you've completed your action items, your resolution(s) that will get you closer to your goal. I mentioned My Fitness Pal, you can also use a simple calendar to track the days you have successfully completed your movement or exercise goals or even the days you've completed your decluttering goals. 

Do you need help refining your New Year Resolution & figuring out a way to track your action items? I am here to help if you do! Don't be afraid to reach out!