How to keep resolutions alive and watered!
January – the month synonymous with resolutions and, dare we admit it, with denying ourselves our usual ‘pleasures’. Are you cutting out alcohol this month? Or perhaps throwing chocolate and crisps out of your cupboards? Or limiting yourself to only one coffee a day? Have you resolved to add more movement or exercise into your routine? Perhaps you have committed to get out of bed a little earlier every day, or to join a friend at a new yoga class, or you have bought some trainers with the intention of finally going on that jog you’ve been meaning to do for the last couple of months? On a professional note, perhaps you have resolved to be in-person more, or to keep on top of your inbox with a new system for managing everything that comes in.
Keeping your resolutions alive
We talk regularly to our clients about the importance of having goals and we encourage them to make their goals clear, stretching, exciting and applicable to the ecosystem that they are currently operating in.
We all need some motivation to keep us going, so breaking a big goal into smaller milestones can be very effective. If you’re looking for a promotion by the end of the year, what do your achievements look like this month to ensure you stay on track and disciplined? If you want to run a half-marathon by the summer, is your first goal is to join a running club or to download a training plan? Write each element down and tick it off – we can guarantee that you will feel a sense of accomplishment! If you’re smart, you’ll share it to add a layer of support (and accountability).
Watering the seeds
We’ve got our own goals as a business for this financial year and, at first glance, they could look pretty overwhelming. So we’ve taken the approach of viewing our priorities by month so that we can collectively work towards the smaller achievements in pursuit of the longer-term goal. Whilst we are actively working on current priorities, we are also ‘watering the seeds’ for next month, so that the shoots are already showing when we get to them. It’s a great approach that makes life significantly easier! We encourage you to try it for yourself.
We should finish by saying that we don’t think resolutions are exclusive to January. What’s stopping you from kick starting that nutrition programme on a Wednesday in March? Why shouldn’t you dust off your trainers in November? We’ll be reminding you to review your January resolutions in a couple of months, while suggesting that you consider introducing new resolutions at other points in the year, it keeps the stoke high. And as for chocolate and coffee, we find that moderation throughout the year is key!
