How To Make Resolutions for 2023?

Hello Readers, wishing you all an exciting and successful New Year 2023!

Everyone identifies a new year with celebrations. Everyone looks forward to celebrations for their rejuvenation of our hopes, dreams, and the purpose of life. While each of us stars twinkle in our own ways, especially on New Year's Eve, how would it be to keep shining throughout the year? How would it be to have our New Year's Eve excitement expanded to the rest of the year too? After all, a year ultimately translates to months, weeks, and days. Isn’t it?

So the wonder question is, what does it take to do that? And as we ask that ourselves, most of us already have the answer upfront owing to its simplicity, just requiring a confident acknowledgement.

It’s as simple as “Resolutions”. To elaborate, “planning”, preceded by thinking, and followed by execution.

An interesting fact about the New Year Resolution is that 90% of the enthusiasts who start, drop it by the same month's end. And still some filter out till the next month end. Isn’t that blood-stirring to try? Of course, the journey towards the goal begins with a simple first step. And what factors matter to stick to the goal will be the subject of our discussion here today.

Measurable Goals

Resolutions & Goals do sound the same but subtly differ from each other. While resolutions are the results that we wish to manifest and celebrate, goals are a set of actions that helps us to achieve these resolutions.

Knowing that, let’s begin to write our resolutions first. We could pen down many, especially when we are trying this for the first time. However, the lesser they’re, the easier and more worthy they become to be achieved. It could be 4-5 or as you find better.

This is followed by breaking the resolutions down into small milestone goals. Certainly, this will break your head, but that’s like breaking the ‘wal’ to gain a ‘nut’. Really break it, into months and weeks, to the point of achievable actions for this week, beginning tomorrow.

Realistic

While we pen down the goals, it’s important to keep them realistic so that doesn’t burn us down in as soon as 3 days. Since the journey is 365 days long, it’s ok to keep it easy initially. Better persevere reaping none, than fall sowing a tonne.

The goals are best decided, by considering and accepting our capacity.

Resolutions should better not be seen as a time-proven desire fulfilling ritual, but a rational method to rise or even identify our challenges. It could even be identifying our challenges, to begin with honestly, and breaking that into goals of analysing, researching, joining a workshop, reading self-help books, etc.

I read a quote recently, stating it's ideal to have 3 things to focus on each day to keep it simple. If we persevere, we’ll observe the snowball effect.

 

Prioritize

All resolutions are certainly important since they made it to the list.  But it is important to number them as per our priority. Once we are clear on this, it becomes easier to begin and work with a focus on one thing. Some work with one resolution at a time, but if it’s boring, most interweave 2 or more in a way that neither burns us down, as well as keeps us excited. But understanding the priorities of our needs will help us when the goals conflict.

Never Back Down

Feeling discouraged already? It seems you’ve registered successfully 😁👍.

There could be many reasons for this – perfection, instant expectation, etc.

Repeat: It’s OK to be NOT OK. This will train us in simplicity and patience that will help us lifelong. Resolution requires passion, but patience as well. It’s not a mere heat game. Before we achieve goals, we'll achieve these wonderful qualities.

So take a break! Some people relax on weekends, and take a break from the marathon, to feel relaxed and inspired to continue again on a Monday.

Support

Not even walking as a child came on our own until we mastered the art. This stands true for all learnings. It is best to have, a few like-minded friends or be a part of a community or some experts in a similar area who could help us achieve this. As you might have heard: If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together. So look for one.

Environment

While we take the support of like-minded people, it is also important to dissociate ourselves from those who may not show respect for the importance of self-care. Imagine trying to rise up at 4 AM while surrounded by those who party post-midnight. Time is short, the journey is long, and experiences in it are deep and rich. So choose thoughtfully.

Patience

Patience translates into taking small steps daily and at each step, accounting for the journey and reflecting on our impetus to start the journey. Though the progress appears like the growth of a young sapling inside rough sand, the momentum that each small step will offer pays in the end with lasting fruits. So just stick to it.

Celebrate

Human psychology has been found to be strongly motivated by rewards. Without rewards, there would be no motivation which paves the way for confidence and creativity combined. Without rewards, our progress is met with procrastination.

So remember to acknowledge and celebrate every tiny progress in day-to-day life than underestimate those as insignificant. As we daily count our blessings and celebrate those, our focus changes to positive and instils us with self-love and confidence.

 

Having written this, I also begin my journey with a set of challenges and goals. Maybe the first goal can be – to survive the first month 😅. 

Please feel free to add your valuable suggestions and experiences.