February - The Most Powerful Month of the Year

Ask most people in the personal development field about New Year's resolutions and they'll most likely give you the same answer - they don't work. There are dozens of articles on the web and in magazines telling you why not. But put simply, they usually don't work for one simple reason - they are incomplete.

Incomplete? Yes, it's true. At its most basic - we know what we want to happen, but we just don't think clearly enough about how we are going to make them happen. And to make it worse, if we give ourselves a whole bundle of resolutions and vow to begin them all on the same day - a day when we are possibly still in holiday mode - we really are setting ourselves up to fail.

January/February Blues

So, when winter is at its darkest, dampest and most miserable (in Britain at least),
your cherished resolutions have already crumbled before your eyes and you're feeling pretty low about yourself and your ability to succeed. Believe it or not - now is your very best time to begin again - but this time you can do it properly.

From feeling dud to feeling good. It's your choice.

You have two options - continue to wallow in the sense of failure those New Year resolution duds have given you - or figure out what went wrong and turn yourself from dud to livewire!

Because the fact is that in failing to get those resolutions working the first time, you've given yourself a fantastic database of information to help you work it better this time. And the great thing about renewing a goal is that your determination will be much stronger than the first time around.

So don't give up, start again and succeed. Don't you owe yourself a second chance?

Review, review, review

In case you've not got the message - it's review time. Do not skip the review!

1. Review your resolutions.

• Decide on one or two that are truly meaningful and you'd love to continue
• Get a clear understanding of the impact fulfilling this resolution will have
• Give yourself clear, sensible goals

2. Review what worked. Although you may have faltered, there may have been some great stuff going on that really worked for you. So what was good that you'd like to keep or do more of?

3. Review the reasons you failed.

• What/who got in the way?
• What didn't you like?
• What did you find more difficult than expected?

So, have you reviewed? Good.

Then it's time to make a new plan.

This time you've got your experience to help you. It will prove invaluable.

1. Check your goal again. Make it measurable. If appropriate, give yourself completion dates and interim goals. Write your goal down and keep it visible.

2. Think hard about how you are going to make it happen.

• Use the learning about the stuff that worked to help you succeed
• Figure out alternatives to the bits that didn't work
• Decide whether you need help. What kind of help do you need and how can you get it?

If help is what you need to succeed - then get that help. It is not weak to seek help in order to succeed - weakness is knowing you need an extra push from someone else, but dooming yourself to failure by not getting it.

Renewed energy, determination and self esteem

Remember - now really is the best time for you to start over. Once you've decided, you will feel a surge of positive feelings, energy and power. Use that power first of all to review and plan. And then use it to succeed with your not-so-new year resolutions.

Source:

35 Common Sense Ingredients For Successful New Years Resolutions!

There is no magic pill for making and keeping New Year resolutions. A wish written on the back of a cocktail napkin at the stroke of midnight on December 31 does not automatically come true. It takes hard work, sacrifice, clarity of thought, and a realistic, written plan, to succeed. If you truly want to make and keep a New Year resolution, fulfill a dream, or achieve a daily goal - tackle the challenge, one step at a time, one day at a time. Banish the 'Someday, Someday, Someday Syndrome.' Instead make every day, New Year's Day. Make every day day count in the coming year.

Rather than growing frustrated and depressed over that same tired list of resolutions - the one that you ignored last January - dare to be different. Try something new. Think outside the box. Don't be afraid to color outside the lines. During the next 12 months, pursue just one dream that inspires passion, interest and desire. Make your dream achievable with careful forethought. Define your dream with a simple, one-sentence resolution that outlines the 'who, what, when, where, why, and how'. Then make that dream and resolution a reality with a plan that consists of small steps that you can take take one at a time, one day at a time over the course of a year. But don't overwhelm yourself by thinking that you have to complete all of your daily goals 'today'. Start small. First, focus on today's goal(s) and the week ahead. As you gain momentum, the plotting, planning, and achieving gets easier and easier to manage.

Over the years, this simple, common sense strategy has enabled me achieve a wide array of dreams - both large and small - including my commitment to exercise, health and fitness; and my determination to stop smoking, earn college degrees, buy a home, master photography, show gratitude, and write daily . . . to name a few of the priorities on my 'Lifetime Resolution List' (the resolutions that I make and keep, permanently). If you are ready to consider the next steps in crafting a resolution that fits you and your lifestyle, keep these common sense tips in mind:

STEP ONE: Create A Lifetime Resolution List, All The Things You Would Love To Do & Achieve!

1. Choose the right resolution, something you truly want to 'do' every day.
2. Choose a resolution that is important to you.
3. Choose a resolution about which you are passionate and interested.
4. Choose a resolution to which you can commit yourself 100%.
5. Choose a resolution that can become a lifetime habit, or an on-going source of achievement, reward and joy.

STEP TWO: Question your motivation and desire.

1. Analyze: Ask yourself "Why this resolution"?
2. Analyze: Ask yourself, "Is this resolution 'realistic"?
3. Analyze: Ask yourself, "Will I enjoy pursuing this resolution each day"?
4. Analyze: Ask yourself, "Can I visualize this resolution, see it in my mind's eye, and picture myself doing it every day"?

STEP THREE: Adopt a simple system of resolution-setting and resolution-keeping.

1. Dare To Dream: Open your mind to all the wonderful possibilities - 'Yes' you can achieve your chosen resolution if you believe in yourself, your gifts and talents.
2. Decide: Resolve to pursue your resolution with commitment and great determination.
3. Define: In one sentence, outline the 'who, what, when, where, why, and how' of your resolution.
4. Do Your Homework And Research: Identify the necessary tasks and goals to get your started.
5. Develop A. Plan: Determine the large, long-range steps, and break them into small daily tasks; revise your plan as you learn and grow.
6. Do It Daily: Pursue at least one small step/goal each and every day, according to a timeline and deadlines.
7. Do A 'Daily Resolution Diary': Write it down.
8. Do Daily And Weekly 'Check-Ins': Chart progress, identify obstacles, make course corrections, and reward yourself for accomplishments.

STEP FOUR: Identify landmines and defuse them.

1. Don't Procrastinate: Banish the 'Someday, Someday, Someday Syndrome'.
2. Don't Give In To Fear Of Success, Or Fear Of Failure: Face challenges with courage, let go of the past, learn from your mistakes, and move forward into your future.
3. Don't Get Overwhelmed, Or Discouraged: Be focused, but flexible; and follow your plan, but be willing to make revisions.
4. Don't Grow Bored, Weary, Or Burned Out: Seek variety in your goals and pace yourself
5. Don't Give Up: Take a break!

STEP FIVE: Case a wide net - identify and use a wide array of tools to succeed.

1. Hold yourself accountable with your journal, by asking friends and family to offer reminders, and joining a blogging community.
2. Enlist a 'Resolution Partner' to join you in your journey, lend support and ideas, and share the fun.
3. Find a mentor to offer advice and inspiration.
4. Join a class, or club, to increase your knowledge and skill level within an organized structure.
5. Seek daily support from your family.
6. Open your eyes: Accept inspiration from the ordinary and extraordinary in your world.
7. Believe in yourself and your resolution throughout the ups and downs.
8. Be organized, disciplined, committed, passionate, and motivated by your victories.
9. Don't replace your dreams with regret - instead, 'Go For It'!
10. Don't set the bar too high - instead, give yourself time to learn how to soar over it.
11. Challenge yourself, but be realistic about your daily, weekly and monthly expectations.
12. Celebrate your successes and reward yourself often!
13. Always Remember: Success breeds success; each success builds on another, like a stairway to the stars!

This is just a snapshot of the many ingredients that are necessary to make and keep a New Year Resolution. Bottom line: All the books, videos, systems, blogs, and advice in the world can't generate results 'for you' - they are simply tools. If you truly want to achieve a dream, change something about yourself, create a new habit - it is entirely up to you to make it happen with ingenuity, hard work and sacrifice. It is your choice. It is up to you. Only 'you' can make your resolution a reality...but the joy and reward you will find along the way will make the journey worth it!

Remember: I Resolve To...Achieve My New Year Resolutions, One Resolution, One Day At A Time For One Year. It's your choice. Do it today. Turn your resolution into reality in five simple, common sense steps: Dare To Dream, Decide, Define, Develop A Plan, and Do It Daily. Make your resolution a permanent Lifetime Resolution, something that's with you for good! Above all, Be A Resolutionista, someone who makes resolutions, keeps resolutions, and enjoys the journey! Let's Go For It!

Kim Simpson, a former journalist, provides communications, fundraising services and strategic planning, for Members of Congress, non-profit organizations, corporations, and associations in the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area. A self-employed entrepreneur, with more than 30 years of experience, she launched IResolveTo.Com in 2005 in an effort to help others to achieve their New Year Resolutions, Dreams and Goals. Her motto is: I Resolve To . . . Achieve My New Year Resolutions, One Resolution, One Day At A Time For One Year.™ Let's 'Go For It'.

Source