The New Year is the perfect time to start fresh and reflect on ways you would like your life to change for the better in the future. While most people set resolutions that end up flopping by February, you can set clear and attainable goals for yourself and your family that will help you all grow together.
Take It Slow
Work towards your goal one piece at a time. It is important to take it slow and not take on too much at once. Some people fail when it comes to their New Year's goals because they fail to plan out a realistic path. You do not have to start every goal on day one. If you plan on incorporating more self-care in the new year, test out a few practices at your own pace to find the ones you like and can stick with throughout the year.
Pick a Word
Try working with one word or phrase instead of creating a long list of resolutions for the year. You can choose a word that can guide you and help you make decisions as opportunities arise.
My word for 2022 is QUALITY. I am choosing "quality over quantity" to guide my choices to not add too much to my plate and focus more on quality time with my family and myself. My words for 2021 were BOLD and BRAVE, which led me to situations that allowed me to be bold and brave (like starting Somocom Lab).
What word or phrase can you use to guide your decisions and direction for 2022?
Add Emotions to Your List
We do not typically think about emotional intelligence when setting goals, but it can absolutely be included! Something you can do for yourself is set a goal to find a therapist you like or set aside time each week for journaling.
For your kids, you can plan time to connect with them individually to get to know them better and work through emotional challenges they may have. You can schedule a weekly game night to play the EQ Kids Crew! The Social-Emotional Card Game for Kids to help build your family’s emotional intelligence and behavior management skills.
These are practical and straightforward ways to achieve a goal that will impact your family for a lifetime.
Follow Through with a Plan
It's easy to say "I want to lose 50 pounds" or "I want to learn a musical instrument." Keep in mind that big goals like these will take some time and effort. Diets are hard to start because you may feel unmotivated or hungry. Musical instruments require time to master, and you may start with weeks of just learning notes before getting to any fun melodies.
Remember that the beginning is tough. Muster up the courage and enthusiasm to continue with your efforts. Remember that most people give up, but you're not most people, are you?
You are different because, unlike most people, you will create a clear and realistic plan to take you right to success. If you're going to lose 50 pounds, define how you will lose those pounds. Are you starting an exercise routine? Are you going to join Weight Watchers or count calories?
Whatever your goals are, make sure you outline how you will accomplish them. Give yourself time to see results to stay motivated and set short-term check-in points to make adjustments as needed.
Visualize the Outcome
When you run into snags in the road, as you're bound to in life from time to time, it will help to visualize yourself reaching your end goal. Visualization makes it feel real and motivates you to continue to work hard to make it happen.
To do this, sit in a quiet area, close your eyes if you find that helpful, and see yourself living life as if the outcome were real. How do you look, what do you see around you, who is with you, what do you smell, and what emotions do you feel? Really putting yourself in that situation and experiencing it as if it already happened will help you get there faster.
The Right Attitude
The right attitude can take you far in every part of your life. You've probably realized that if you don't believe that you can accomplish something, you simply won't. How can you expect to achieve great things if you don't believe in yourself?
An optimistic attitude is critical to your success. Think about how you felt when you first set your New Year's goal. Chances are that you had a hopeful and positive attitude, so try to maintain that mindset throughout your journey to success with your goal.
Bottom Line
Once you've determined a realistic goal and divided it up into short, achievable tasks, you're bound for success as long as you take action to complete each step. Go ahead and set those New Year's goals for yourself and your family, knowing that this year is going to be your most successful yet!
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