Each year nearly 100 million Americans make New Years resolutions to lose weight, eat better, exercise, save, invest or earn more money, quit drinking or smoking, strengthen or make new relationships, or a host other things that might otherwise eliminate unnecessary pain or cause joy in their lives.  Every year, 97% of the resolutions made are broken.  25% are broken within the first week, close to 40% are broken within the first month, and nearly 60% don’t make it past the six month mark. The next year, the same resolutions are made to do, start, or stop the same things again.

New Year’s resolutions – the way our tradition would have us make them just don’t work.  Here are two major reasons why:

1. Relatively little thought goes into determining the resolutions.  Either the last few days of the year or on New Year’s day, a list of things that are top of mind are jotted down as resolutions.  The draw backs to this are numerous, but here are a could a major ones:
   • All of the bad behaviors and indulgences from the Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday season are on the top of our minds.  These do not necessarily reflect the things of most importance for the whole year
   • Usually includes a list of things we think we should do regardless of our level of motivation.  These are the things we want to do so our commitment to them is relatively low
2. Resolutions usually focus on completing tasks and not transforming behaviors.  A resolution to clean out the garage will usually need to be made the following year because no effort is taken to change the behavior that led to the junkie garage in the first place.

A much better approach is to focus on goals and objectives that are in alignment with both who we are and who it is we desire to become.  Doing this will require more work – the kind of work that will increase the odds of the objectives being met.  You will therefore be better off reducing the number of goals you set each year and creating a plan for each one.  The process might look something like this:

• Determine the areas of your life or work in which you have the greatest desire to make a change
• Craft a long-term vision for what things would ideally look like in that area
• Create a shorter-term goal for the year that will move you closer to that vision
• Determine what structures and supports you need to put in place to accomplish the goal – including potentially a coach or accountability group

If you have no commitment to follow through on your resolutions, they do more to rob you of your power than they do to support.  This year, try it a different way and create plans to which you are committed and build in accountability.  This will increase your odds of having a powerful 2009.

Have a powerful day!
Cecilia