The end of January is near and if you’ve been able to
keep all your New Year’s resolutions then you’re truly a
champion. But let’s face it, for the majority of us New Year’s resolutions start
to weaken once the merriment of the holiday season wears off and the grind of a
new year begins. But that’s okay. There’s still plenty of time to make sure those
resolutions stick. We at SkyPlanner are determined to keep to our resolutions
so we sought out to find what makes people break them in the first place and turned to one of our favorite sources of knowledge, TED Talks, for
answers. Here’s what Stanford University psychologist Kelly McGonigal has tosay about the fight to keep resolutions: The struggle of willpower
According to McGonigal, willpower is an ever-present battle between the part of your brain that demands immediate gratification and the part that’s willing to delay that gratification for greater satisfaction later. The key to winning in the battle of willpower is to train yourself to value the long-term over the short-term.
Finding the right resolutions
McGonigal also touches on the idea that the difficulty of sticking to resolutions is that you’re not choosing the right resolutions for you. She states that many times resolutions are set to conform with social norms more than actually bettering one’s self for self-improvement’s sake. She expressly mentions the common “gym” resolution because that’s what modern society deems acceptable: going to the gym to be fit. She proposes asking yourself what, on December 31st of 2014, you want to look back on and be proud you accomplish, then make that your resolution.
It’s okay to cut them into smaller pieces
This one is pretty straight forward. As with other goals, resolutions can best be fulfilled when they’re done in small steps. For example: instead of resolving to lose 40 pounds in a year, resolve to walk 30 minutes daily. The end result will be the same but won’t seem as daunting.
Build a support group
It’s always easier to stick to resolutions if you have support. Letting others know about your resolutions is a great way to stick to them. But it is important to note that it’s important to tell the right people, and only those people. While it is okay to tell a select few who will help you stay committed- a relative, close friend, or coach- announcing it on Facebook or Instagram so others congratulate you on your resolution and not on your successfully accomplishing it may lead to a false sense of accomplishment before you actually accomplish anything.
Building upon the above, SkyPlanner wanted to share two links that hold a large selection of videos that will help and inspire you to accomplish your goals for 2014:
SkyPlanner, South Florida's premier Salesforce consulting and customization company, wishes all of you-our clients, family, and friends- the best of luck in sticking to your New Year's resolutions, and we hope the information above gives you everything you need to keep going (or start altogether). We ourselves are going to accomplish our first big goal of 2014 by running in the 2014 Miami Marathon (formerly the ING Marathon) in the name of the Debbie's Dream foundation. We'll let you know how we do next week. Wish us luck!
