Your New Year’s resolutions…

Oh wait, you thought I wanted to know what your New Year’s resolutions were? No.

I don’t care.

The problem is that too many people make them and don’t stick to them. I include myself in this. So, I have stopped listening when people start a sentence with the words ‘My New Year’s resolution is…’. I care much more about what you were able to achieve in 2019 to be honest. Why? Because that’s probably what you are going to do again for the better part of 2020.

What you do speaks so loudly that I cannot hear what you say.

I’m not judging you, I’m just looking at the stats. According to research, 80% of resolutions fail by February.

That said, there is hope for those who are determined to make real lasting change. Author Tim Brown says change when it comes to business is more than just an innovative idea:

‘The myth of innovation is that brilliant ideas leap fully formed from the minds of geniuses. The reality is that most innovations come from a process of rigorous examination through which great ideas are identified and developed before being realized as new offerings and capabilities.’ He calls this design thinking.

Well, I think the same is true for all change – in particular, life changes. Your life changes should be based on an examination of your lifestyle and goals. The best change ideas probably won’t just pop into your head, they will come to you after taking a real honest look at yourself and will probably evolve over time. Once identified those change ideas will need to be adapted and tried, probably a few times before they are adjusted to suit you and become good habits.

In short, if you decided on New Years eve that you are going to become a vegan because you saw it trending on Twitter, it’s probably not going to stick.

My advice is to take notes and journal your daily or weekly activities, wins and fails. Use this journal to inform your goal setting and habit forming for 2021. That’s right, a whole year of note taking. Look back over those notes and identify what innovative changes you could adopt and give them a try. Don’t be put off if they don’t stick as you had originally intended, just adapt them until they work for you.

Tim Brown also talks about collaboration and I think this is key. If your ideas for change don’t fit with family or work life then they are not feasible. Consider and even involve your family, friends or colleagues in deciding on what life changes to make and not only will you get a fresh perspective but the process of change will also go alot smoother.

What do you think, will you journal for 2020?

K.x