New Years Resolution

2020 was… mmh… a weird year? Weird, challenging, surprising, depressing, interesting… so many different terms describe 2020. I started 2020 very motivated with some ambitious New Years’ resolutions. I did not only had those resolutions I also a plan and strategy to execute. But then, we all know what happened: COVID-19. And it’s still a thing.
Did I achieve everything I wanted? No. Where I able to execute my strategy? No. Did I adapt to the situation? Yes. Was I successful? Maybe.

Why you should make New Year’s resolutions.

I love to use the time around Christmas to slow down and reflect on the current year and my previous resolutions. It’s a good idea to stop and adjust your course of action. Do we need New Year’s resolutions for that? No. But I think they are still helpful to navigate the next year and your decisions.

To think in “closed year”-intervals feels strange to me. But it can be helpful to have this man-made rhythm to adjust and reconsider our actions, goals, life vision. It’s important to have in mind that we can (and should) do this also during the year.

Pro Tip: I do a retrospective at least every 3-months. I look back and observe (not judge) where I am right now, where I wanted to be, what went well, what needs to be improved and are my goals and strategy still aligned with my dharma.

Let’s look forward. What do you want to achieve next year? What goals do you have and what does your life vision look like?

Resolution setting exercise:

• 3 main personal goals you want to achieve in 2021
• why do you want to achieve them?
• 3 main career/business goals you want to achieve in 2021
• why do you want to achieve them?
• 3 main health goals you want to achieve in 2021
• why do you want to achieve them?

You see, I always ask the “why”-question. It is so important to know WHY you want to achieve a specific goal. If your “why” is not strong enough, you will not priories the actions you need to take to achieve this goal. So if you don’t have a strong “why”, find another goal with a strong why.

Quote, A goal without a plan is just a wish.

Read more about how to create a strong vision and WHY you always need to have a strong WHY.

Once you are clear about your individual goals and your “why’s”, think about your strategy.

Tips on a successful strategy:

• Set realistic goals. If you want to lose 20kg in January – that’s not realistic. It’s always important to stay realistic. So, if weight loss is your goal, you should think about what you need to do to achieve it e.g. change in your diet, change in your workout routine, etc. Set a goal for each of the categories. E.g I want to try a primal/paleo diet, I go to the gym 2 times a week.
• Be precise. Be as precise as possible. E.g. I want to lose weight. Therefore I will change my diet to primal/paleo on the 15th of January and I will go to the gym Monday & Thursday at 6 pm for 60min. In those 60min I do a warmup, weight lifting, some cardio, stretching and a cool down.
• Allow yourself to fail. You will have days, where you fall off the train. And that’s ok. Every single day, no, every single minute you can make a choice. Just because you failed once, does not mean it’s over, you will never reach your goal. It’s just one step back. It’s best to get back on track as soon as possible. One-off – that’s it. Look forward, revisit your goals and why’s, and continue to work towards them. No-one said it’s always easy and straightforward.
• no rush, no pause. I know instant results or success would be awesome… but usually that’s not how it works. Sorry. Steady progress is the best you can do. It helps tremendously to have an accountability partner like a gym buddy, your best friend, or think of hiring a health coach which helps you to stay on track.
• get the support you need create a healthy environment so that you can be successful. E.g. if you want to lose weight, but you love sweet treats in the evening. Remove them from your household and don’t buy new ones. Change your shopping behavior.
• get a health coach. No, I’m not joking. A health coach will support you, cheers you on, holds you accountable, and makes sure that you have the tools and the knowledge to make the right choices to achieve your goals. Apply for free coaching. To see if it’s something you like.

• Category: General
• Tag: 2020, 2021, goals, Health Coaching, New Yeas Resolution, strategy