Many of us bring on the New Year with joy and anticipation. We look to heal and correct mistakes that have been made, memories that brought sadness, or goals that never made it to fruition. Who doesn’t want a fresh start? With eagerness, the resolution listing begins. I won’t do this. I will complete that. And on and on and on. But it is no secret that many of the promises we make at the start of the new year, fizzle off to become nothing more than a hopeful wish for a change.
I will read more.
I won’t think negatively.
I will workout consistently.
It is the never ending cycle of resolutions. I don’t know about you, but I find that the mentality of resolutions just does not work for me.
But does that mean we just quit goal setting all together? Should we stop attempting to attain a better quality of life? Yes, I am quitting resolutions. But that doesn’t mean I won’t be setting up a list of potential accomplishments in 2018.
So here is the thing. The way we typically make New Years Resolutions rarely work. These vague phrases to do more or be better are not enough to change old habits. You have do something different if you want something different.
“The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again expecting different results.” Albert Einstein
So how do we change? What can we do to ensure that our goals are more attainable? The answer is in the form of a bucket list. If you have been a reader of mine for a while, I have talked about this bucket list concept before in last year’s post, How to Make and Keep Your New Years Resolutions. But I wanted to discuss how I actually go about writing my goals for the upcoming year.
So the truth is I actually quit doing resolutions a long time ago. My parents decided several years back that as a family we would write a list of 10 things we wanted to accomplish during the upcoming year. We would post the list in a visible spot in our home and reference it throughout the year. When a task or goal was completed, we would write the date next to the goal.
I took this concept of writing a bucket list instead of resolutions into my adulthood. If you read last year’s post, I revealed what I do in detail to ensure the most success when it comes to goal setting. To give you some inspiration on what to write on your bucket list, I will give some of my items below. But I also believe it is okay to be a little unrealistic when it comes to goals.
“Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you’ll land among the stars.” Norman Vincent Peale
Dare to dream. By getting a little more specific when writing out your goals you are more likely to have results.
For example, instead of writing something like, “read more,” try writing, “Read 20 books this year. I will do this by listening to Audible on my way to work and taking 30 minutes to read before bed.”
State how you will accomplish your goal along with the goal itself. Okay, now get to work! Grab a pen and paper or open the notes app on your phone and make your bucket list. If you need some inspiration, here are a few of my bucket list items!
Quite Sugar
Declutter with the Konmari Method
Read 30 Books
Go to Disneyland
Start Youtube
Run a 5K
Remember to get specific and align your goals with concrete ways to accomplish them. So for running a 5K, start by running a mile twice a week. Then run a mile and a half three times a week. And so on.
2018 is going to be our year. Let’s do this!