One of the fundamentals in being accountable in 2023 will be to set yourself a goal or series of goals which you can be held answerable to their success. I’d suggest many of you may be contemplating the following: ‘I want to lose weight’ ‘I want to drink less’ ‘I want to work fewer hours’ ‘I want to exercise more’. Whilst these are all interesting and admirable, it’s top level. Without delving into the detail – it won’t be achieved. The keys to being successful with your goals in 2023 are:
Be detailed with your goal
Think about all the quantifiable elements. How much, how often, details where you can put numbers next to your goal ie, I want to lose weight becomes ‘I want to lose 10kgs.’
Set the deadline
We all work better when there is a deadline in place. A deadline focuses the mind. It also provides a definitive date for you to ascertain whether you have been successful. The goal now becomes ‘I want to lose 10kg by 31 May.’
Track, re-evaluate and don’t be overwhelmed
Once you have developed your larger goal, it can seem large! It can seem scary. Personally, I think the best goals should be. They should be scary because they will be massive changes to your life. However, by the time you reach that goal, it should have consisted of several small leaps as opposed to an enormous one. The enormous change should only be noticeable when you look back at the previous version of yourself. So, from your main goal, you need to break it down into smaller chunks (month-by-month or even week-by-week) and keep tracking your progress. If you stay blind until the last month, you may be too far away from your goal. If you track regularly, it allows you to alter plans, adjust behaviours and keep you from become overwhelmed.
Don’t have two bad days in a row
When it comes to any behavioural change, you will always have bad days. Days when you revert to a behaviour that you are trying to eradicate. This could be too much eating; too much phone time, work time; too much to drink, smoke, too little movement, or exercise. This will happen! The key is to always remember to NEVER let it happen for two days in a row. That’s where you fall off the wagon. That’s where you lose your momentum and motivation. You will have bad days – but they must never be consecutive ones. I’d like you to take this opportunity to revisit whatever thoughts and aspirations you may have had for the new year and ensure that you’ve layered it up in a manner that allows you to be accountable, to track progress and most importantly to achieve in 2023.
