Remembering Resolutions and Keeping Them: A New Year’s Challenge

The first time I saw a New Year’s resolution list was when I was in Nursing School. A college educator and friend showed me his list and I became intrigued. New Year’s Resolutions are about starting over, and keeping a promise. New Years are synonymous with renewal of time, and thus a renewal of your soul and spirit. This enables many to think of challenging ourselves to be better. Some resolutions involve major change and some are small changes. But in order for your resolution to be successful, it is important have some good advice.
Keep it simple. The chance of failure increases when you set your sights too high. Making it a simple baby step with a specific detailed goal. A goal of weight loss of 10 lbs is more realistic than obtaining a model’s body.

Plan ahead. Thinking about how you will succeed in your resolution depends on good planning. There is a very good planning quote from Mark Twain, "the calamity that comes is never the one we had prepared ourselves for."

Utilize friends and family for support. In training, have a running buddy have your shoes, and you have their shoes. This way, you will have to meet up with the other in order to work out. Using family members for support is essential for motivation. They can help keep you on track and be your sounding board when you complain.

Understand that failure is not the end. If you have tried many times to complete your resolutions, just to fail by February, try to find out how and why. I know that it took Edison awhile to develop the light bulb, and Michael Jordan said, "you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take." Failure is just a stepping stone on your journey to success. Good luck with all your New Year’s resolutions!