Why Even Your Greatest New Years Resolutions Do Not Answer Your Deepest Questions

On average, only 8% of people keep their new years resolutions (NYR’s) each year.

Let’s take a moment to let the this statement sink in.

For those 8%, well done! Whatever you have done seems to be working so continue your path to success.

For the additional 92%, this is for you.

The greatest reason why many of us fail to execute and sustain NYR’s is because they are action based decisions without proactive mental clarity and mindful action planning.

For example, when was the last time you decided to make the following NYR’s:

To be more intentional with eating healthy by bringing less junk food into my home
To begin reading more books on personal growth in order to make positive changes to my life
To take 30 min a day to be totally distraction free, present and mindful of my thoughts
To be have 60 min of moderate to vigorous physical activity per day (including weekends)
To focus weekly on my goals and opportunities for future growth

For most of you, here are the commonly sought after NYR’s :

Exercise more
Lose weight
Eat more healthily
Take a more active approach to health
Learn new skill or hobby

(Source: The Telegraph)

Here is why most people fail at these most common NYR’s:

Exercise more (Too vague and too broad. Define more!)
Lose weight (Reactionary decision based on results instead of starting with a healthy mindset)
Eat more healthily (How? We seem to know more about space than we do about nutrition)
Take a more active approach to health (This one actually isn’t too bad. But what do people think is healthy? Switching from regular fat peanut butter to low fat peanut butter?)
Learn new skill or hobby (This one is good. However, who wants to achieve only 1 out of 5 goals?)

Now, let’s come back to my top five resolution examples. The biggest difference here between the two sets of NYR’s are a couple of things:

The above which I mentioned are more intentional, specific and big picture focused rather than focused on quick results or abrupt starting points with no real direction.
The above which I mentioned are focus on your mindset more than your physical physique. What the mind thinks, the body does. It is not the other way around.

The biggest reason why NYR’s need to start with a big picture personal growth mindset is because when you open your mind to the possibilities that you can achieve, your results will come naturally. Forcing a change over night because of the date on a calendar does not answer your deepest questions. It simply starts the ignition. Your mindset is the fuel that will actually take you somewhere with great results.

Reading, mediating, equipping, praying, thinking and conversing about your big picture goals, dreams and expectations will help you answer your deepest questions first.

Simply put, stand back and evaluate/grow before you jump in with no real direction, sustainable goal or ultimate purpose.

That time for growth is now.

My encouragement for you today is this. Stop focusing on results when you plan your NYR’s. Focus on the mindset you need to achieve your goals and surround yourself with as many tools as you can to launch your best self. This will take you from being one of the 92% to graduating with distinction with the 8%.

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This post was previously published on Medium.com.

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