The start of a new year is a great time to set goals and intentions for ourselves.
We’ve just gotten through the holidays, and are feeling optimistic about the fresh, new start to a year. We’re excited about all of the opportunities for change that are coming our way.
We’re determined that this time we’re going to stick with our New Year’s Resolutions ….until we fail after just a few weeks.
Why does that happen?
The most common problem that I’ve seen in New Year’s Resolutions is that they’re not specific, actionable goals.
Without a real plan for how to achieve what we want, we’re inviting ourselves to fail. Goals can look intimidating and difficult without breaking them down into small, manageable steps. We become paralyzed, not knowing where to start. It seems easier to not start at all.
So, how to we make sure that we achieve what we want?
I like to use the SMART framework when setting goals or resolutions. If you’re not familiar, let’s review:
- S – Specific
- Use specific language when setting your goal. Drill down as far as you can, so you know exactly what the goal you’re trying to accomplish is. Consider how vague a goal to “lose weight” is, compared to a goal of “lose 10 pounds of fat”.
- M – Measurable
- Using metrics helps you to make your goal specific. How do you know when you’ve achieved your goal? Determine what you’ll use to measure your goal, and set it. For example: “travel more”, vs “visit 5 new cities”.
- A – Achievable
- Setting goals that are out of your reach can be very discouraging. Make sure that your goal is something that you can realistically achieve. For example “build $10,000 in savings” may not be achievable with your salary and monthly expenses, but “save $100 from every paycheck” might be.
- R – Relevant
- Is your goal something you truly want? Your goal should be relevant to you and the path you want to follow. Having a driving purpose behind your goal reminds you why you’re working so hard to get there. Setting a goal like “Run a marathon” without a real purpose, or when you don’t enjoy running, is almost certain to fail.
- T – Time-Bound
- Determine when you want to achieve your goal by, or how often you want to do an activity that gets you closer to your goal. Adhering your goal to a timeframe continues to define your goal, and, as we know, making the goal specific helps ensure its success. This step also forces you to consider what a realistic timeframe for the goal might be, factoring in events that happen throughout the year, or how busy you can expect certain days to be.
Activity time!
Let’s take some common New Year’s Resolutions and transform them into goals that are SMART.
A goal that I’ve seen on tons of New Year’s Resolution lists is some form of “Go to the gym more”.
So, let’s take that as our starting point.
My New Year’s Resolution: “Go to the gym more.”
I’m going to assume that the goal is already Relevant to those who have this goal. The desire could be to lose weight, build muscle, tone their body, train for a sport, be a part of the gym’s community, or something else.
For the sake of example, let’s say I want to build running endurance, and that I want to be able to run a 10K by the end of the year.
Just by taking my goal one step further, I’ve added elements that are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, and Time-Bound!
Now, my SMART New Year’s Resolution is: “Go to the gym 3x a week to build endurance, and run without stopping for a whole 5K by June and a 10K by December.”
All of the elements of a SMART Goal are there:
- Specific
- I’ve defined “Going to the gym” as building endurance for running and training for a 10K.
- Measurable
- How will I know once I’ve achieved my goal? I want to be able to run a 10K without stopping. Once I’m able to do that, I know that my goal has been met.
- Achievable
- My goal is reasonably achievable for me, personally, even if I’m starting with no running experience.
- Relevant
- My goal is to go to the gym because I want to train and build endurance. My motivation is being able to run a 10K.
- Time-Bound
- I’ve built a few different timeframes into this goal. 1.) I’m planning on going to the gym 3x per week, 2.) I want to be able to run a 5K by June, and 3.) I want to be able to run a 10K by December.
All the pieces are there! It may even look deceptively simple.
Let’s examine some other common New Year’s Resolutions. I’ll re-write them into SMART goals. Let me know if you agree in the comments!
| New Year’s Resolutions | SMART Goal Example |
| Save more. | Save $2400 by December by transferring $100 from each paycheck into Savings. |
| Eat better. | Create and follow weekly meal plans, allowing up to 2 cheat-days per month. Calculate and monitor calorie and macro intake each day, and stay within calculated range. |
| Drink more water. | Drink 96 oz of water each day. Measure and log water intake each day. |
| Read more. | Read a book for 30 minutes before bed each weekday. |
| Less screen time. | Shut off devices, or put all devices in another room 1 hour before bed each day. |
| Meet more people / be more social. | Research local Meetups or groups in my area. Attend at least 1 event by March, and at least 3 events by August. |
| Travel more. | Visit 3 new cities by December. |
| Be more grateful / optimistic. | Start a gratitude log by January 7th. Record and reflect on 3 good things that happened at the end of each day. |
| Spend more time with family. | Schedule 2 hours per day for device-free family time. |
Before I take off today, I’ll leave you with a few extra pieces of advice:
- Make a plan
- Plan out how your foresee yourself achieving your goal over the coming days, weeks, and months. Work your habits and goal’s babysteps into your day-to-day. Schedule check-ins and record your progress.
- Think about any obstacles in the way
- What barriers are you going to face when attempting your goal? What setbacks may occur. Most importantly, what can you do to prepare for or avoid them?
- Forgive yourself
- Falling off of your routine is okay. It happens to everyone. Pick up where you left off and keep going, or take a break if you need to; but don’t allow a setback to put you off of your goal altogether.
- Celebrate your achievements
- Acknowledge yourself for a job well done. Celebrate the milestones you hit along the way to your goal, and especially celebrate the goal itself.
I’ll elaborate on each of these in upcoming blog posts, so stay tuned! I’ll also be jumping into the very first planner I’m reviewing.
Wishing you all a very happy and safe New Year – Cheers!
And remember: You can start a new habit or goal anytime. You don’t have to wait until the New Year. The best time to start is right now.