During the last days of December, many people usually participate in the ritual of making a list of resolutions for the year that is about to begin. Delimiting New Year’s goals is a great opportunity to exercise introspection; to evaluate where we are, clarify our priorities and determine where we want to go.
Often, on this list, we throw together a potpourri of habits that we would like to implement to adopt a lifestyle more aligned with the kind of people we aspire to become: exercising daily, eating healthier, taking up the hobby that we We would like to practice but we have been procrastinating so much, spend fewer hours in front of screens… And the list could go on and on.
The problem is when, as soon as we enter January, we find ourselves faced with the arduous task of implementing the projects, habits and objectives that we set for ourselves for the New Year. On some occasions, we set very significant yet challenging goals, a combination that can lead us to feel overwhelmed or fall into frustration before we even take the first step towards what we want so much. For this reason, in this article we will develop some Useful strategies to motivate yourself in order to meet your New Year’s goals
The importance of setting flexible New Year’s goals
Every year-end we select different goals for the coming year not only because the change of the last digit on the clocks brings with it a new window of opportunities for our lives, but also because every year-end we are not the same people we were twelve months ago. . Perhaps before we valued the fulfillment of our academic-professional goals more than the cultivation of lasting friendships over time. There is nothing wrong with it.
In the interim of each year-end, people go through endless situations that transform us, while we transform them. In this exchange, it is inevitable that changes will occur in what we want and, above all, in who we are. Resisting this is nothing more than denying the flexibility that human beings possess throughout their lives.
Now, taking this into account, What is the reason why we continue to set rigid and static objectives? Why not allow ourselves to question them? Sometimes we behave stubbornly in order to achieve our goals, completely ignoring the fact that we or our circumstances can change, and therefore we can review them at any time in the process, not just exclusively in order to anus.
Many times we lose sight of how important it is to rethink during the rest of the year where we are going and why we are walking there. When following the tips below to motivate yourself and meet your New Year’s goals, it is crucial to remember that There will rarely be motivation if we set a goal that is not meaningful to us at this very moment
How to motivate yourself and meet new year’s goals
Keep these recommendations in mind to boost your personal development at the start of the new year.
1. Set affordable and short-term goals
Sometimes, the reason we feel unmotivated when pursuing a goal or tackling a project is that it is difficult for us to know where to start. This is usually common when we set a long-term goal but forget to decompress it into small, sequential and progressive steps that direct us towards the point we want to reach.
For example, we might want to get into the habit of going to the gym daily, because it is an activity that we know makes us feel good after doing it and helps us achieve a healthier lifestyle. However, “going to the gym every day” is a goal that is too comprehensive, crude, and does not sound possible for those who are not used to it and, therefore, not appetizing. For that reason, We could choose a short-term goal that fits into our routine and is easy to achieve
If necessary, this could be “going to the gym this Monday, right after getting off work.” This will motivate us to carry out the task and we will be more likely to gradually increase the difficulty of the goals until we reach the one we initially set, in this case, acquiring the habit of going to the gym every day.
2. Choose a reward for meeting the goal
Rewards encourage us to move towards our goals. For example, let’s imagine that our goal for this year is to write a book and that we have already divided it into small, more attainable goals, such as studying the structure of a novel, sketching our characters, or signing up for a mentorship.
Now, when we manage to achieve any of these small goals, It is important that we reward ourselves in some way It is at this point that we can exercise creativity and select rewards that are linked to the goal we want to achieve to further reinforce the habit and also increase our motivation. In this case, we could buy that wireless keyboard that we always said we would like to have or acquire the writing software that could help us speed up our time when sitting in front of the computer.
Motivation is an important pillar when it comes to meeting New Year’s goals, since without it it is difficult to take the first step. However, it is possible – and, to a certain extent, expected – that we will present various resistances towards some projects that we have proposed to carry out this year. On many occasions, this is because the objective conflicts us on a cognitive or emotional level; That its fulfillment involves, at the same time, overcoming internal barriers, such as negative past experiences with similar objectives or limiting beliefs.
For these cases, paradoxically, one of the most effective ways to motivate yourself is Don’t wait for motivation and just start somewhere A well-known quote from Picasso says: “When inspiration comes, let it find me working”; and something similar happens here. Motivation is an ally to achieve our goals, but it is not essential to do so. In many situations, motivation appears after carrying out the task that appears difficult to us and not vice versa. It is motivating to see how even believing that we would be incapable – for whatever reason – of achieving a small goal, how even feeling fear or anxiety, we were able to achieve it.
