Are you feeling the new year’s “fresh start” excitement for all the new opportunities in store for you? The beginning of the year is the onset of possibilities with a renewed hope to get things right. Thus, the beginning of a new year seems like an opportune time to make resolutions and set new goals. However, once the high of a new goal starts to wear off, most of us begin to struggle with our New Year’s resolutions. In fact, studies reveal that only about 20 percent of those who make a resolution actually keep it. There are many reasons why New Year resolutions, or goals in general, don’t stick. In this post, I want to offer up encouragement to motivate you to beat the odds and to believe that good outcomes are in your favor. But only if this year, in addition to a setting a meaningful goal, you’d also put in extensive planning and apply game-changing strategies to achieve your goal.
Every goal is the sequence of a well-orchestrated strategic plan connecting achievable action steps to be accomplished over a period of time. And there we have the crux of the problem. Time can be either friend or foe. It can propel us, or it can slip through our fingers like sand. We are indeed masters of our time, free to fritter it away, or strategically make the most of every day. As soon as we commit to a goal, the countdown to completion begins. To own our goals is to manage our time. In the beginning, everything seems possible and thrilling. Sadly, novelty always wears off. Whether it’s a month, three, or six months in, inertia raises its ugly head making it hard to keep on track. This is when we need to dig deeper into the commitment to reach our goal reminding ourselves why we chose to pursue it in the first place. There is no start nor expiration date on setting and working toward self-actualization goals. Our goals are our possibilities. Our achievements are the sum of our daily effort.
This year, take a new approach: striving rather than arriving. The journey toward a goal matters more than any one outcome. Rather than focusing on the destination (goal-achievement), focus on the process of exploration and discovery (personal growth.) As you launch yourself into the new year, thinking about the things you’d like to achieve in 2022 in order to become an improved version of yourself, remember it is a process and not a destination. And it is the process that counts rather than merely the end result. Whatever the end-goal is, it never defines you, or your self-wroth and value. What counts is the commitment to go through the process of “becoming.” It’s a journey of endeavor, failures, endurance, learning, and growing. To realize new possibilities, you need to be ready, willing, and able to embark on a journey of self-discovery. Give yourself the gift of flexibility to explore a series of destinations.
Goals are a great tool to raise the bar on performance, sharpen skills, and increase capabilities. Beware of falling into the mind trap of self-shaming. Feeling bad about where you are. Feeling guilty. Resenting yourself. We were indoctrinated to believe that we are supposed to browbeat ourselves into achieving our goals. Shift your perspective to think of goals as catalysts for change and growth, for renewal and transformation. Use the fresh start to test assumptions, to stretch your creative muscles, and to learn and grow in some way. Move fluidly, steadily, and with confidence. Keep an open mind, trust what you know, and remember what it is all about. The essence of new endeavors is well-being. Your values will provide the roadmap for the experience as you start working towards a new goal. You don’t necessarily need to do great things, but rather strive to do small things with great joy. Tap into what gives you joy and find a way of doing more of it in the world. Embracing the new means pursuing the things that you care about and achieving what would ultimately bring your life greater meaning and fulfillment.
As you set your 2022 goal:
Be open to expand your thinking and mindset to new ideas and possibilities
Feel more positive to remain in optimal conditions for thriving
Learn to focus on what really matters
Be inspired to make good choices and take action
Gain perspective and develop perseverance
Use the DARE 4-steps model to turn your goals into reality:
Declare (your goal/what you want to achieve)
Analyze (everything that you have going for you and the things that might get in the way)
Resolve (to think bigger and strategically to keep generating new ideas and solutions)
Explore (choices and come up with a plan and strategies to meet your goal, the original or revised)
Ready to make 2022 your best year yet? What’s Your BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goal)?
My book 52 Weeks: 52 Ideas for Scaling the Mountain of Career Success provides a practical step-by-step guide to create your plan, strategies, and flexible milestones to achieve success as you define it.
May you reach new heights of success in 2022 as you enjoy the journey of self-discovery and mastery!
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