Have you ever had the problem, where you create a very optimistic yet extremely unrealistic New Year’s resolution, expecting to stick to it no matter what, and on January 3rd, you completely give up? 

Don’t worry, it happens to the best of us, but what makes a good New Year’s resolution, and how can one stick to that goal? Fresh starts, such as a new year, motivate individuals to set new goals. But most people don’t know how, specifically, how to set goals that they know they will achieve. 

One technique that ensures that creation of new goals is ideal, is the S.M.A.R.T. technique. According to the University of California, “Crafting S.M.A.R.T. Goals are designed to help you identify if what you want to achieve is realistic and determine a deadline.”

The S stands for Specific:

• What specifically do you want to accomplish? 
• Who needs to be included? 
• Why is this a goal?

The M stands for Measurable:

• How can you measure progress and know if you’ve successfully met your goal?

The A stands for Achievable:

• Do you have the skills required to achieve the goal? If not, can you obtain them?
• What is the motivation for this goal? 
• Is the amount of effort required on par with what the goal will achieve?

The R stands for Realistic/Relevant:

• Why am I setting this goal now? 
• Is it aligned with any overall objectives?
• Am I really going to achieve this?

The T stands for Timely/Time-bound:

• What’s the deadline?
• Will I be able to achieve this on time?

And what’s great about this technique, is that you can apply this to your work life, fitness routine, personal life, anything really!

Another technique that is getting popular are vision boards. These take up more time, but trust me, they are worth it. According to Piedmont Healthcare, the science behind these vision boards, is the law of attraction. The law of attraction states that whatever we say, and think about, we eventually manifest, so it will find a way to incorporate itself in our lives, regardless of if you were thinking about something positive or negative. Through actively communicating your wishes, you are repeatedly visualizing what you want, and imagining it, until it comes true. So be careful!

First, visualize your goals, you can use the SMART goals technique to be more specific, but don’t overdo it. “If you had 10 times more courage, time, or resources, what would you do?” (Piedmont Healthcare). Really try and ‘feel’ your goals, what would you feel when you achieved them?

For the creation of such vision boards, you can have an online one, or a physical one, but make sure you put it somewhere where you will see it every day. Also make sure that it is easy to understand, so make the images relate to each other in some way. You can do this by, for example, making the top left corner dedicated to work, the bottom right corner dedicated to your health, etc. 

Step 2, find images. You can rip them out of a magazine or print them if you are creating a physical board, or find images online and create a poster or folder somewhere, where you will see them every day.

Then, “Speak aloud. Once you have completed your board, step back and study it for a few minutes. Then, speak your intentions out loud and make a commitment to live them out.”. And finally, display them! This can be in your office, your bedroom, in front of your desk, or as your phone/computer/iPad background. Just make sure that you look at them every day for a distinct period of time. 

Some tips to get started on setting up for success:

According to Forbes, expect setbacks. “It can be tempting to give up a resolution entirely after experiencing a setback. Making space for error can help a person become more resilient and stay committed to their goal even when a misstep occurs along the way. For instance, if you miss a gym session due to oversleeping, plan to set your alarm the next morning 10 minutes earlier to get ahead of another potential pitfall, rather than throwing in the towel all together.”, says Dr. Brook Choulet, M.D., who specializes in improving mental health and performance. 

Dr. Choulet also encourages readers to focus on one thing at a time. Wanting to completely change everything in the new year with that new-year’s motivation is completely understandable, just make sure you are dividing your goals into reasonable steps, so that you won’t feel overwhelmed and tempted to give up.

She also says to ‘celebrate the little wins’, which can motivate you to pursue more of your goals, since you are getting that fresh hit of dopamine. “Building sustainable habits takes consistency and resilience.”, so take your time. Working on a goal that you don’t specifically like doesn’t mean it’s torture, it just means that you need to find a way to make it fun. Maybe it will even turn into something that you love doing the most!