The Resolution Revolution
There's just over two weeks until New Year’s Eve, and that means only one thing...I'm still not crazy enough to go into Times Square to see the ball drop!! Ha. Actually, New Year's also means a sudden tidal wave of enthusiasm that leads people to develop those pesky New Year’s resolutions. Their plans for attacking 2007 and really making those changes they’ve talked about. Drop those 15 pounds. Find that six pack on their abs. Quit puffing on cancer sticks. Cut back on the partying. Buckle down at work and land that big raise. Whatever hopes they’ve been harboring in the back of their minds are suddenly allowed to come forward. Why? Well, because it’s 12:01 a.m., January 1st. That’s when everyone makes those kinds of changes. Right?
Wrong.
If the brief act of flipping a calendar’s page and singing "Auld Lang Syne" was enough to dramatically change your life around and start really working on your goals, people would sing that kooky song every 30 days and the world would quickly become a much better place. But it just isn’t that simple. For some, maybe. But for the majority? Nope.
Goal setting isn’t something that you need to save up and unleash once a year. Ideally, I’d like to see everyone with a few long term goals, but also several smaller goals that get re-evaluated every few weeks. One method often recommended for this type of long term goal setting is the Yellow Paper method. Grab a sheet of lined yellow paper (studies have shown that notes written on yellow-colored paper are more likely to be remembered. There’s a fun fact for the day.) If possible, use a legal-sized sheet. More space means more lines means more writing means more goals. ;) Next, simply list “stuff you’d like to accomplish.”
Don’t stress much about timeframes and deadlines, that’ll be the next step. What we want right now is to think Big Picture, regardless of where you are now. “Fit size 32 jeans without a belt.” “Wear size 6 sexy black dress.” “Complete 10 pull-ups.” “Hold a full split between two chairs while smiling.” “Run a marathon.” Whatever crosses your mind as something that would just be good to do.
Last step, after you’ve jotted down a few larger goals. Take a few minutes with each one and break it down into several smaller bullet points/baby steps/short term goals that work towards them. For example, if I wanted to fit into a smaller size of clothes, some of the shorter steps would be:
- Learn about, and implement, a specific nutrition plan.
- Build lean muscle tissue and burn bodyfat with a specific training plan.
- Consult a fitness coach to find the most efficient ways to do both of the above.
- Go shopping for new clothes.
Mission accomplished.
Final thought: I recently found out about John Goddard, a man in his mid-70’s who has completed a truly outstanding list of tasks: his Life List . When he was 15 years old, he wrote a list of 127 goals he wanted to achieve. Today, he has less than 20 remaining. Some of the to-do's that were done: Explore the Amazon River, climb Mount Vesuvius, dive in a submarine, and learn to play the flute and the piano. Some of the still-to-do's: climb Mount Everest, visit the North and South Poles, and visit the moon. That, my friends, is goal setting.
Wrong.
If the brief act of flipping a calendar’s page and singing "Auld Lang Syne" was enough to dramatically change your life around and start really working on your goals, people would sing that kooky song every 30 days and the world would quickly become a much better place. But it just isn’t that simple. For some, maybe. But for the majority? Nope.
Goal setting isn’t something that you need to save up and unleash once a year. Ideally, I’d like to see everyone with a few long term goals, but also several smaller goals that get re-evaluated every few weeks. One method often recommended for this type of long term goal setting is the Yellow Paper method. Grab a sheet of lined yellow paper (studies have shown that notes written on yellow-colored paper are more likely to be remembered. There’s a fun fact for the day.) If possible, use a legal-sized sheet. More space means more lines means more writing means more goals. ;) Next, simply list “stuff you’d like to accomplish.”
Don’t stress much about timeframes and deadlines, that’ll be the next step. What we want right now is to think Big Picture, regardless of where you are now. “Fit size 32 jeans without a belt.” “Wear size 6 sexy black dress.” “Complete 10 pull-ups.” “Hold a full split between two chairs while smiling.” “Run a marathon.” Whatever crosses your mind as something that would just be good to do.
Last step, after you’ve jotted down a few larger goals. Take a few minutes with each one and break it down into several smaller bullet points/baby steps/short term goals that work towards them. For example, if I wanted to fit into a smaller size of clothes, some of the shorter steps would be:
- Learn about, and implement, a specific nutrition plan.
- Build lean muscle tissue and burn bodyfat with a specific training plan.
- Consult a fitness coach to find the most efficient ways to do both of the above.
- Go shopping for new clothes.
Mission accomplished.
Final thought: I recently found out about John Goddard, a man in his mid-70’s who has completed a truly outstanding list of tasks: his Life List . When he was 15 years old, he wrote a list of 127 goals he wanted to achieve. Today, he has less than 20 remaining. Some of the to-do's that were done: Explore the Amazon River, climb Mount Vesuvius, dive in a submarine, and learn to play the flute and the piano. Some of the still-to-do's: climb Mount Everest, visit the North and South Poles, and visit the moon. That, my friends, is goal setting.
posted by Chris Colucci at 5:08 PM
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