What Will Be Different About This Year?

Happy New Year! Maybe you are the kind of person who likes to set New Year’s resolutions. This year you want to read more, give more, go to church more, or be a better friend, spouse, or parent. Or maybe you want to be more successful with your job or get into better physical shape. On the flip side, some of you don’t even bother setting a resolution because you know you won’t actually stick to it. There is some wisdom in that, but I also think there is a flaw. People on both sides of this fence end up failing. One side fails by not trying, the other by not planning. In this post, I want to give some practical ways for you to succeed with your resolution this year.

For those who don’t even want to bother attempting a resolution, you have already failed at yours… Not setting goals doesn’t put you ahead of the person who failed at accomplishing their goal… you both end up in the same place. Better to try and fail than not to try at all. You need to ask yourself WHAT? What do you want to improve on this year? Is there something that you know you can do better? The simple answer is YES! Of course you can do something better! So what is it? Admitting an area that you need to improve on is not a weakness, it is a strength. As you decide what goal you want to set, it is important be be reasonable. A lot of people fail at their New Year’s resolution because they set unreasonable goals. You aren’t going to lose 50lbs in a week… its going to take time and work. And if you think eating chicken and veggies for dinner every night will help you lose weight, it will… until you get tired of chicken and veggies for dinner every night. Eat your chicken and veggies, but give yourself variety and treat yourself on occasion; that will prevent you from tastebud burnout.

For those who have already set a New Year’s resolution, ask yourself WHY? Why do you want to do _____________? The WHY question will be what motivates you, not the WHAT. If you don’t have a strong reason why, you should probably just give up now. It’s hard enough to succeed when you are motivated, but impossible when you are not. Another thing to consider is WHO? Who is going to hold you accountable to accomplish this goal or resolution? If you don’t have that, you are again setting yourself up for failure (sorry to be pessimistic). Another common reason people fail to better themselves each year is because they try to do it alone. If you want to get into shape, find a gym partner. If you want to read more, find someone to read books with you. Western society is too individualistic. We don’t think we need anyone but ourselves to accomplish our goals. This mindset is a big part of why so many fail at their resolutions each year. Lastly, you need to think through HOW you are going to accomplish the goal. If your goal is to lose weight, how are you going to do that? Exercise? Diet? Combination of both? Running? Walking? Eating less carbs? Counting calories? It’s vitally important to plan how you are going to accomplish the goal, otherwise you set yourself up for failure.

Answering the questions WHAT, WHY, WHO, and HOW doesn’t guaranteed success, but you will be setting yourself in a good position to succeed. I will leave you with this poem by William F. O’Brien:

“Some say risk nothing, try only for the sure thing,
Others say nothing gambled nothing gained,
Go all out for your dream.
Life can be lived either way, but for me,
I’d rather try and fail, than never try at all, you see.

Some say “Don’t ever fall in love,
Play the game of life wide open,
Burn your candle at both ends.”
But I say “No! It’s better to have loved and lost,
Than never to have loved at all, my friend.”

When many moons have gone by,
And you are alone with your dreams of yesteryear,
All your memories will bring you cheer.
You’ll be satisfied, succeed or fail, win or lose,
Knowing the right path you did choose.”