New Year, New You

By Author: Robert Deans
Total Articles: 246
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The dawning of a new year is a time for reflection and change. Many individuals choose the start of a new year as a time to have a fresh start in their life; potentially by bettering their diet, taking more exercise, or getting a new job. However many individuals don't stick with their resolutions for more than a couple of months. Keeping driven to "get fit", or "lose weight" is difficult if you do not have anything to measure your fitness by, or don't have a precise target weight loss.

Remaining Motivated

If you want to make sure that you stick with your new year's resolutions, then the most important step is to set yourself clear, doable goals. If your objective for 2012 is something difficult, like running a full-length marathon, or shedding a great deal of weight, then break up your big goal into several smaller ones. Attempt to lose five to ten lbs at a time, or participate in a few fun runs before you undertake the big one.

In addition to setting mini-goals, give yourself incentives for every stage. Select a stunning outfit that you'll buy when you reach a particular size. Buy ...
... yourself a new computer upgrade with the money you pocketed by giving up smoking for 2 months, allow yourself an evening out if you finish a 5K fun run, or, if you prefer, set yourself a task of doing a 10K fun run, and ask people to sponsor you. It is also extremely fulfilling to raise money for charity.

Keeping Yourself Accountable

For many people, it's simpler to adhere to resolutions if you've told many people about them. Lots of people choose to keep their resolutions a personal thing, because they find that the pressure of other people knowing about their battles works against them. Think about the kind of person you are, and what motivates you.

Whatever you choose, it is essential that you at the least remain accountable to yourself. Write down your goals in a notepad, and return regularly to make sure that you're on target. If you've got a clear objective, like running a 5k fun run, and you monitor your progress properly, you will have the capacity to truthfully evaluate how you are doing.

It could be tougher to monitor career focused goals, but there are a few things you may do. If you want a new job for example, make a decision that you will redo your Resume during the first full week of the year, sign-up with one employment agency a month, and commit a set period of time every week seeking and applying for openings. Do not set a figure on the number of jobs to submit an application for, or interviews to get - there may be weeks or months where no suitable jobs are advertised. Make sure your goals are bound to things that relate to issues that you have command over.

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This article was written by R. Deans on behalf of The Poppy Run who organise charity events including a fun run. For further info on their fun run please visit poppy-run.com