When you look at the figures the number of people that make resolutions and don’t keep them is staggering. Yet each year people continue to set them and then by the end of February can’t even remember what they are.
I suppose it’s the desire in us all to improve ourselves and our lives. I mentioned this quote in a previous post and it really resonates with me ‘We all need the feeling of forward momentum to be happy.'(Tony Robbins). I think this is why lockdown has been so hard on our mental health because in 2020 many of us felt stuck. So maybe for 2021 the tradition of setting a resolution is more important than ever as it’s something to focus on and keep up our momentum regardless of what is going on in the outside world.
Resolutions generally fall into one of two categories, to stop a bad habit or a promise to develop a positive habit. People often want to do things like loose weight or to stop smoking. There is an abundance of research and work in the business world about setting goals and how to successfully achieve them. With such vague statements it’s not hard to see why come the end of January they are already off track.
Instead of resolutions think of them as goals. What goals are you setting for yourself in 2021. I first came across the Why, What, How tool early on in my professional career and while the most well known is probably the SMART (simple, measured, achievable, relevant and time-bound) I’ve never got on with it that well. I was again recently reminded of the Why, What, How in some training with Usborne and the biggest advantage over the SMART method is the motivator, the why.
One thing I learnt a long time about in Boots is that in order to achieve the goal you need to know your motivator. It was the critical factor between success and failure when people used to come into the pharmacy counter to quit smoking. A wedding, a new baby, a health scare, whatever the persons’ motivator it was more likely to lead to a positive outcome over those people that just wanted to! If you don’t know why you are doing something and that reason isn’t a strong motivator than chances are you won’t stay motivated.
We’ve never been more aware of our health than in 2020 so say your goal is to be more healthy in 2021 you have to break it down. What bad habits do you want to stop and what good habits do you want to start.
Get a health check once a year or sort out a minor niggle that’s been bothering you for ages that you keep putting off. The other element is often about eating maybe we want to lose weigh or eat more healthy but even that’s too vague. How much weight do you want to lose and by when or what is it about your food that you want to improve – less takeaways or eating more veg.
Once you’ve got those bits figured out you need to figure out the how. If you want to quit smoking are you going to go cold turkey or use replacement gum or patches, what are you going to do when you feel you need a cigarette, what good habits can you start to fill the gaps of the cigarettes you used to have when drinking or having your coffee.
So the easiest way to illustrate the Goal, Why, What, How method is to share a real example of my own. Why is the motivator, What is the end result and How are the tools to get you there. It’s really simple and it gives enough detail to keep you on track.
Goal – to be healthier
Why – for my kids and to fell better about myself.
I spent 5 days in hospital in November and missed my boys birthday. It really hit me how important it is to take care of myself to be there for my kids.
What – to be a size 12 by the end of the year and to have sorted out 2 ongoing health niggles, eat better and to do some regular exercise.
How
1. Book an appointment with Dr for a health check and to get the niggles sorted in January.
2. Attend a weekly class to lose weight.
3. Make a weekly meal plan and shopping list and don’t bring any junk into the house.
4. Start a virtual dance class once a week and try and practice 2 other days a week on my own.
The how is a bit like a to do list and I can check off the things I am doing, thats the important part. I know when or how often I am doing each thing and each item is bringing me closer to my goal.
To improve your chances of success write the goal down. In your diary, on your fridge, somewhere you can see it and keep looking at it. Believe it or not that simple thing of writing it down massively increases your chances of achieving a goal. And the second thing is to tell a friend. Saying it out load is more of an intention, sharing it means that we also have someone to keep us accountable – ‘how are you getting on with your be healthier’ resolution?
And my final thought on it is think of a little something that you will treat yourself to when you succeed. A new pair of shoes, a new dress, a dinner out, a trip with the money you’ve saved from not buying cigarettes. It’s important to celebrate success!!
Have a wonderful 2021 x x x