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Based on everything you read and hear about New Year resolutions, you’d think ‘making and keeping’ them is a near-dead practice. Personally I’m not giving up and I hope you will consider making one Near Year resolution in 2007 and sticking with it. New Year resolutions may be ‘antiques’, a beloved practice from a bygone era.
Instead of giving up on them – throwing them in the trash heap – consider dusting them off in 2007and applying a bit of ‘spit and polish’! Become a ‘resolution revolutionary’ in 2007. Open your mind, dare to dream. Change the way you create, pursue and achieve your New Year resolutions.
Instead of drawing up a long list of a dozen or more things you think you should change about your self – things about which you have no true commitment, desire, or interest (key components of success) – consider trying something new in 2007. Do just one thing that you truly want to do!
This year, if you’re like me and you want to be true to yourself and your desire to achieve your dreams, you’ll give yourself a gift! Lower the bar just a little. Give yourself time to create and implement a simple, specific, realistic, measurable plan that allows you to take small daily steps toward fulfilling your resolution.
Make your resolution a dream: one of the things that you truly, passionately would love to learn, see, change, do, or experience in this lifetime. We all have them, but we push them to the back burner where they quietly simmer day after day. Simmering isn’t going to cook that gourmet meal. Move your dream to the front burner in 2007! Turn the stove on a slow boil, enjoy the mea!
Forget about the list of 10-20 resolutions that you’ve made year after year, the list that overwhelmed you, sapped your energy and enthusiasm. Forget the tough love and intense pressure to fulfill one resolution and move on to the next one. Forget about improving every single area of your life, every single day. Who has time for that in this day and age? Life is busy. Multi-tasking is a way of life for many of us! But enough is enough.
What’s wrong with a gentler approach? What’s wrong with being kind to yourself? What’s wrong with doing something for yourself? What's wrong with reducing some of the stress and adding some enjoyment? Absolutely nothing. Consider trying something new in 2007, be kind to yourself, do something for you, enjoy yourself! In 2007 make just one resolution, one of your cherished dreams.. Pursue that resolution one day at a time for one year. In following this simple strategy, it doesn’t mean you won’t get out of bed, go to work each day and work hard to earn a living. It doesn’t mean you won’t work hard to be a good parent, strive to care for your health with exercise and a good diet. You’ll do all those things and much, much more.
This year, may also be the year that you try something new, you’ll make time for yourself – just 20-30-minutes each day – to pursue one resolution, your dream, something about which you are excited and enthusiastic. A dream that stokes your creative juices, piques your desire.
If you pursue that one dream with passion, commitment and determination, on January 1, 2008, you will say: “Wow! I achieved my dream!” instead of “Oh, I don’t remember where I put my list of 10 resolutions.” So how do you make the journey, and see it through to the end? Consider these five simple, common sense steps:
1. Step One - Do Dare To Dream: Open your mind to the possibility that you can and will achieve your cherished dream in 2007. Make that leap of faith – have confidence in yourself, your skills, your dream. You can achieve your dream if you stop waiting for that elusive someday. You can achieve it if you learn from your mistakes, leave them in the past, and move forward into your future. It’s your life story, be assertive, strong and courageous. Begin writing the next chapter today. It’s time to stop ‘thinking about it, do it'!
2. Step Two - Do Decide: Resolve means to decide firmly with great determination. Make a decision, a promise to yourself, today to pursue your resolution, your cherished dream, your goal to the finish line. Keep your eye on the prize every step of the way, but enjoy the journey every step of the way.
3. Step Three - Do Define: Define your resolution in one concise sentence. Make it specific, measurable, memorable. Instead of making a resolution to travel more in 2007, resolve to plan and fund a road trip to the Grand Canyon in August, as well as one weekend day-trip in my region each and every month. Those weekend trips are your reward for making the journey, for keeping your resolution.
4. Step Four – Do Develop A Plan: Start by doing your homework. Research all the many steps that it will take to travel to the Grand Canyon. Choose the 12 places in your region that you would love to visit. Buy an inexpensive spiral notebook and a wall calendar. Outline all the things that you need to do to make your ‘travel’ a reality. Break the tasks down into small daily tasks, then begin mapping your tasks on the calendar. Don’t be afraid to cross things out. Course corrections are important as you ‘learn and do’ throughout the year. Create order out of chaos.
5. Step Five – Do It Daily: You don’t need to devote all your time to your resolution. You don’t need to win the lottery to make it a reality. To keep your dream alive, to make it a reality, devote 20-30-minutes each day, or every other day and the time will compound like interest in the bank. You will achieve your resolution, your dream in 2007!
There’s no better time than the present to begin the journey toward success: keep your resolution, fulfill your dream, achieve your goal! Try something different in 2007. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain. You just might surprise yourself!
Kim Simpson, a former journalist, provides communications and fundraising services and strategic planning, for Members of Congress, Non-Profit Organizations and Associations in the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area.
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