New Year's Resolutions

New Year's Resolutions are often False Starts for the Upcoming Year.  I read 86% of people fail to keep their Resolutions through the month of February.

Karen Lynch in her blog on Resolutions, wrote that New Year's Resolutions are "a January thing".  New Year's resolutions have lost "credibility" for her.

Making New Year's resolutions shows peoples wish for positive changes in their lives.  Dave Schoof accumulated a group of wonderful resources for making New Year's Resolutions become successful.  He shared his collection of resources in his blog, How to Create New Year's Resolutions That Stick.

Do you know how to make your New Year's Resolutions stick?

Steve Pavlina wrote a very interesting post 30 Days to Success, which could be applied to making New Year's Resolutions.  Basically, Steve's idea is to make New Year's Resolutions on a 30 day trial basis rather than being motivated to make a life change forever or the rest of your life.  Making changes for the rest of your life is too overwhelming, whereas 30 days are manageable.

Making a 30 day commitment is also preferred to do trying to keep resolutions by living a day at a time.  While it is true we live a day or, in reality, a moment at a time, living in the present may sabotage actualizing resolutions.  Make New Year's resolutions for 30 days, evaluate the benefits from the resolutions and decide whether you want to extend your resolution for another time period such as for another 30 to 90 days.

Karen Lynch in Live the Power also emphasized her belief in resolutions, but not "appointment time" or obligatory, seasonal resolutions.  She pointed out that there is nothing magical about starting life changes on New Year's eve or day.  She emphasized making changes, when you are really ready.  Karen also believes that people have the power to be successful with their resolutions, if they start when they are ready.

New Year's Resolutions have a bad reputation, because the resolutions are oftentimes precipitated by popular expectations rather than genuine expressions of a persons thirst for self-development and improving their mental fitness.  Whenever you make new choices for self-improvement, you are beginning a new year for yourself or a new life for yourself.

Remember your choices are very powerful and limiting.  The choices you make at New Year's and throughout the year will be very powerful in determining the quality of your life.  Whatever your choices are throughout the next year will also limit you.

If you set goals for yourself and fail to follow through, you'll be limited to starting the year off with failure.  From my perspective it is better to not make New Year's resolutions, if you don't really feel the need for change and you're not going to be committed to "show up" for at least 30 days.

If you successfully complete your resolutions and goals, you will limit yourself to success and the benefits of success regarding that goal.  Only made resolutions that you are willing to actualize for 30 days.

Wishing you a prosperous year of choice making as your choices are unlimited,

Remember, You Live within the Environment Created by Your Choices!

Dr. Hal

Life and Mental Fitness Coach