Reframing Resolutions
Happy New Year, TEDx-ers!
We hope you’re excited to begin the new year after a fun and restful holiday season.
The beginning of a new year always signals a fresh start, and 2022 is no different. New Year’s resolutions are a great way to reflect on your current lifestyle and create goals to make this year really feel like a new beginning.
While these goals are easily attainable to some people, many of us find it hard to follow through with these big ideas as life gets in the way. It can be frustrating to deal with this year after year, but reframing your relationship with your resolutions can help you finally complete your resolutions and improve your lifestyle.
The first step to reframing your resolutions is to clearly define what they are and your motivations for setting them.
Many times, we don’t achieve our resolutions because they are too abstract. General goals like “this year I want to be a better person” or “I want to be healthier this year” aren’t specific enough to provide you with the guidance you need to achieve these goals. Instead, think about what it means to achieve these. Being a “better person” is very subjective, but to you, it may mean volunteering more and focusing on your relationships. Being healthier can be hard to define too, but it could mean being mindful about what you put in your body or focusing on your mental health. Regardless of what your resolutions are this year, examine how your life would be different while achieving them.
Reflecting on your motivations for these goals will help you further define an action plan. Resolutions are to improve your current mindset and lifestyle; setting unrealistic standards for yourself makes it impossible to actually achieve your goals. Your relationship with your goals affects how beneficial these changes will actually be in your life. For example, instead of saying “I want to lose weight,” try to restructure your mindset and say “I want to be healthier and take care of my body.” None of your resolutions should be based on negative self-talk. They should come from a place of self-acceptance and improvement so they benefit you physically and mentally.
The second step is to set realistic, measurable goals.
After you make your goals more specific, you will start to see specific actions you can take to achieve them. For example, you now know that “being a better person” can mean focusing on helping others and cultivating relationships. Your measurable goals could be to volunteer a couple times a month, donate to charity, or spend more time with family and friends. Being healthier and taking care of your body could mean eating more fruits and vegetables, starting a new workout routine that fits into your schedule, or working towards a specific goal like training for a race.
No matter what your specific goals are, they should start as subtle lifestyle changes that you can realistically uphold in your current environment. Practicing specific habits to reach attainable goals creates a sustainable shift that gradually becomes part of your life and not just a lofty resolution.
To set yourself up for success, write out a resolution statement that you can return to throughout the year that includes your defined goal, motivation, and specific action steps.
Example Statement: I will [SPECIFIC GOAL] because I want to [MOTIVATION]. To achieve this, I will [3 MINIMUM ACTION ITEMS].
The third and final step is to check in with yourself throughout your progress and examine how these changes support your current lifestyle as the year progresses.
Your resolutions and action steps should be things you can start on immediately. If it’s something you’ll put off until “next week” then you’ll never start at all. Begin your progress early and work at a slow and steady pace.
As you work toward your resolutions, return to your resolution statement and the goals you set to achieve it. Think about how it has improved your quality of life since you’ve started. Are the original goals you set still realistic? Have your motivations changed? Is this shift still benefiting you? If you “fall behind,” don’t feel guilty if you don’t reach the goals you set at the beginning of the year. They are only there to be manageable steps to your resolution. A little progress is better than none at all. This just means you need to reflect on your current plan and adjust it accordingly to accommodate the other parts of your life and your mental health.
By clearly defining resolutions and motivations, creating specific and measurable goals, and checking in with yourself throughout the year, anyone can set and achieve positive changes in their lives this year.
Stay ConnecTED!
Caroline Harrison