1. According to research statistics done by the University of Scranton and published in the Journal of Clinical Psychology, in the USA, the top 10 New Year’s resolutions are:
- Lose Weight
- Getting Organised
- Spend Less, Save More
- Enjoy Life to the Fullest
- Staying Fit and Healthy
- Learn Something Exciting
- Quit Smoking
- Help Others in Their Dreams
- Fall in Love
- Spend More Time with Family
If you’re anything like me, you may have recognised one or two of your own in this list. You may also have been more familiar than you like with this line up as;
- It is common to set the same goal year after year. BUT, take heart!
- Statistics state that those who make New Year’s Resolutions are 10 times more likely to achieve them than those who don’t!
- Most people know that for the best chance of being able to tick off your goals we must:
- Write them down (People with written goals are 50% more likely to achieve than people without goals)
- Set a specific end date
- Make them quantitive and measurable
- The 3 Ps of goal setting: PLAN, PLAN, PLAN!
- After PPP, SCHEDULE and TAKE ACTION!
- We could stop there BUT, did you know…
- Sharing goals and
- Providing confides with one’s progress updates — i.e. being accountable, DRAMATICALLY increases your success statistics!
- Use your 10 senses, yes 10! We have sight, sound, touch, smell and taste. These can be both internal and external: 5 internal + 5 external = 10. For example, what we see when we open our eyes can be different to what we imagine when we close them.
Our brilliant minds are like obedient savant children: the more specifically we can create our goals, the easier they are to achieve.
Activate your goals Externally: Consciously notice your goals. Who has already achieved what you want? What does it look, sound, smell, taste & feel like? Take yourself on a dream date to get an accurate gauge. If your goal is a new home, visit a home display village, put yourself in the picture. If it’s a car, take a test drive. A job, try work experience or volunteering. An overseas trip, watch a documentary on where you want to go. There are many ways you can assimilate what it would be like to have achieved that goal, REMEMBER to plan and schedule these into your routine!
Activate your goals Internally: Create your ideal movie of what it would be like to achieve your goal. What are you doing? Who is there with you? What can you SEE, HEAR, SMELL, TASTE and FEEL?
- Here is the clincher, the GOLD….
Be a TEAM — an INTERNAL Team! There is so much to say about the phenomenal benefits of self care, love, nurture and acceptance, that it may fill all the volumes of Encyclopedia Britannica several times over!
Tara Mohr, in her book Playing Big, describes beautifully the relationship we have with our “inner critic” versus our “inner mentor”. Just like the Chinese and Native American proverb of the internal battle between the black & white dog (representing good and bad), the one who wins is the one we feed.
So who are you feeding? Your inner mentor, who believes in you and your ability to succeed? Or your inner critic who through fear attempts to hold you in what’s perceived as a safe state, often sabotaging and limiting your success?
For more info in how to connect with and feed your inner mentor contact me at simone@simoneleslie.com. Happy New Year!
Sources: Research statistics done by University of Scranton’s Journal of Clinical Psychology, goalband.co.uk, studies by Gail Matthews at Dominican University, Tara Mohr – Playing Big
