By Bruce Burke
The Holiday season is a wonderful time to reflect on the year and consider your goals and objectives for the upcoming year. Unfortunately for many, it ends up being a time to review unfulfilled resolutions and create new ones. What can you do to make this year different? Exactly how do you succeed in accomplishing your resolutions for 2019?
At One on One, we espouse a philosophy of creating a clear vision of who you want to be. It is this vision that, in turn, drives your action…your goals. We find this to be significantly more powerful than simply wanting to “lose weight” or “start working out.” There is nothing wrong with these types of objectives or “resolutions,” but our experience is that they don’t typically have the power to change your habits and get you where you want to be.
This year, instead of spending time on your “resolutions,” consider creating a Personal Mission Statement that defines who, exactly, you aspire to be. Once you have done this, you can then begin to consider what action you must take on a daily basis to be that person.
An excellent example comes from a close friend’s mission statement. He aspires to “Walk the walk of unconditional gratitude; not to take anything for granted.” As he relates this to his health, he is compelled to eat well and exercise…to show gratitude for his good health and not take it for granted. When relating it to his financial success, he is compelled to give generously to others…to show gratitude for his prosperity. He reviews his Mission Statement daily to remind him of what is important and stay focused on his vision.
In short, the key to success is to identify and clearly define who you want to be, not what you want to do. Once you have accomplished that, then you can begin to create goals that have more purpose.
Bruce Burke is the Founder of One on One. He can be reached at bruce@oneononefit.com.