The start of any new year can feel like a bombardment of ‘helpful’ suggestions about how to make the next twelve months your year. You are told, over and over, that this year will be epic. You will be epic. And you are nudged, not so gently, to conquer your work life, home life, social life. In fact, every aspect and moment of your life is to be overhauled through action plans, writing lists, completing monthly challenge after monthly challenge…and so on and so on.
It’s little wonder that just six months into a new year, over half of the people who made new year resolutions have well and truly given up on them. And, the chances are, that instead of feeling like some sort of epic conqueror, you actually feel worse than you did at the tail end of the year before!
All that planning, projecting and sought after re-energising is, frankly, pretty exhausting. To really achieve your goals this year, whether they are for your business or in your personal life, we need to reframe our perspective and take a different approach.
Here, Rebecca Hill, Chief Commercial Officer of the Business Data Group explains how we can all benefit from tweaking something within ourselves today that will help shape our future.
Be fearlessly authentic. Any goals you set must be true to yourself and genuinely aligned to what you really want for yourself and your business. This year will be your year because you are living the year! Use it to become a better version of yourself – whatever that means to you.
Remember that Rome really wasn’t built in a day. It’s so important that you don’t put too much pressure on yourself to rush to the finish line. Instead, try to embrace the journey. Pause, reflect, learn from it, then take those lessons forward with you.
Big journeys begin with small steps. Break your goals down into realistic small steps that you can genuinely commit to doing every day. This could be just five or ten minutes spent every morning or evening taking positive action.
Don’t compare yourself to other people. “Comparison is the thief of joy” and so much is true of Roosevelt’s words. Whenever we sense comparisonitis creeping into our thoughts, nip them in the bud! Instead of pulling yourself down thinking about how you shape up compared to other people, give your self-esteem a much-needed break and focus just on yourself. When you do see other people doing well, celebrate those successes and achievements with an open heart and mind. You can take positive inspiration from their journeys and use that to top up your energy and enthusiasm to reach your own goals.
Practice makes perfect! As with anything, the more you do it, the better you will become at it. Small steps stick and consistent action every single day will have the most significant impact on your life. Whatever the small, achievable step is that you have decided upon, dedicate a recurring time in your diary every single day – right now! At that particular time, you will focus on yourself and work towards achieving your very own goals in an authentic, manageable; and most importantly, enjoyable, way.
