Stop Making Resolutions, Start Making Plans

Below, is a great article written by  Dave Ferguson   which, I think, is helpful for all of us getting ready to start the new year:

Why do we keep wishing people ‘Happy New Year’? Will wishing make it so?We make resolutions, but all we seem to be thinking about is what we did wrong during the past year and resolve to do the opposite. I will lose ten pounds (because I gained ten). I will exercise more (because I haven’t been exercising). I will watch less TV (because I couldn’t find anything better to do). In each case the resolution seems more like a punishment and we find it difficult to be motivated by a cure that’s worse than the disease.

If you want the coming year to be a great one, start it off with a different mindset. I want you to begin by imagining yourself on New Year’s Eve, 2008. Imagine being truly content in your life and all its aspects – business, finance, health, relationships, and reputation – whatever it is that will make you truly content. It might take ten minutes or it might take thirty, but create a vision that is real for you. See it and feel it. Got it? Now, let’s make it happen.

That vision is your destination. Since you know where you are now, all you need is a plan to traverse the distance. This is the point at which most people throw up their hands and say, “That’s too much work!” They’re content with resolutions. We, however, imagine the path to our vision. We can see that it won’t be easy, but we begin to formulate the steps we can take each day, each week, and each month to move us closer to our goals. Those steps become plans, each plan having its own goals. Now, the truly hard part: write it down. This is the process of affirming what you want and how you are going to go about getting it. Writing it down moves it from imagination to reality. Now we can focus on our path, our goals, and our vision. We have left the past behind. Because we are focused we will begin to notice the countless opportunities in life that align with our goals and we will take action to integrate them into our plans. It’s energizing. It’s rewarding. It’s an entirely different mindset.

Enjoy the journey. May your vision guide you and sustain you in the coming year.

Dave Ferguson is a coach and the owner of Lake County Business Coaching, Inc., a coaching firm dedicated to helping people in business to improve their performance and their results, to realize their dreams by achieving their goals. More information is available at http://www.LakeCountyBusinessCoaching.com

Tags: Inspirational