Are you sticking to your New Years resolutions?

Are you sticking to your New Years resolutions?

How to set goals that stick!

Most of us know something that we’d like to change or improve; eating better, getting fitter, sleeping more, but how do we get these pledges to last more than a week or two?

These are my steps to success!

Set the right goals

The first step is to make sure you’re setting the right goals. Goals that focus on action that you can change are much clearer and easier to achieve, an example of this would be aiming to take lunch to work at least 3 days a week instead of a general goal of cutting back on junk food.

Having a specific target gives you something to plan around and work towards, and means that you can review whether you’ve been successful in achieving your goal.

Make your goals SMART

How you set your goals is crucial to success, goals that are well set-out have five elements:

1. They’re specific: What exactly are you going to do? How are you going to do it? Instead of thinking about exercising more, try exercising for 30 minutes at least 3 times per week.
2. They’re measurable: Having something to measure means that you can be clear about how close you are to achieving your goal. In the example above it’s much easier to track exercise for 30 minutes 3 times per week, rather than just increasing exercise.
3. They’re actionable: Make your goal related to something that you’re able to change, instead of making a goal to stress less, think about actions like meditation for 10 minutes each morning or using a mindfulness app each day, to lead to reduced stress.
4. They’re realistic: Even with the best intentions, unrealistic goals can be disheartening and impact on long term success by reducing confidence. Think about small changes that are achievable and can be built on over time.
5. They’re timely: Set a time-frame for yourself to keep focused and motivated. Including a mixture of short-term and medium- to long-term goals is usually a good mix.

Be committed

Once you’re clear on what you would like to achieve and how you’re going to work towards this, make the commitment. Writing down goals has been scientifically shown to positively influence success, especially if kept in a visible place. Telling family and friends about your goals is another way to keep motivation, and you might even get them on board too!

Seek advice

As a dietitian, I love to help people achieve their dreams, no matter how big or small. Call or email our wonderful Kiah team to book an appointment with me to see how I can help you!