Instead of New Year’s Resolutions
Happy New Year! Many of us have good intentions of making changes in our lives, especially around the start of a New Year. We make resolutions to change that don’t last very long. We make mistakes in the way we go about trying to change.We get too ambitious or are too vague and don’t create structures to make it easier to change. We don’t decide how we are going to make other changes in our life and habits to support reaching a goal. We don’t give ourselves deadlines or break the goal down into manageable parts and decide when and how to start.
Sometimes we need someone to help hold us accountable, like a friend or therapist. Below is a worksheet I created. You can use it to help you start thinking about any changes you’d like to make in your life and ways to support yourself in making them.
One important key is to schedule your priorities. As you make choices, you may discover you have different parts of you that have conflicting wishes and priorities. Those can become obstacles. But, remember, the obstacles are the path! By moving forward, we can unearth those often unconscious habitual patterns of thinking and feeling and begin to make conscious choices.
PLANNING & CREATING A GOOD LIFE
IN ALIGNMENT WITH MY VISION AND VALUES
Pick 3 to 6 goals for this year.
Some might be about ways of being, some about achieving.
GOAL /Promise to myself BY WHEN (or daily/ongoing)? ________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
HABITS/ ROUTINES THAT WILL HELP ME ACHIEVE MY GOAL
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
MOTIVATION________________________________________________________
WHAT WILL I HAVE TO GIVE UP? (Behavior, habit or belief)
___________________________________________________________________
FIRST ACTION STEPS AND MILESTONES - Break down into smaller tasks and schedule
___________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Wishing you success!
Warmly,
Lisa Cottrell, LPC
Well Being Psychotherapy
Happy New Year! Many of us have good intentions of making changes in our lives, especially around the start of a New Year. We make resolutions to change that don’t last very long. We make mistakes in the way we go about trying to change.We get too ambitious or are too vague and don’t create structures to make it easier to change. We don’t decide how we are going to make other changes in our life and habits to support reaching a goal. We don’t give ourselves deadlines or break the goal down into manageable parts and decide when and how to start.
Sometimes we need someone to help hold us accountable, like a friend or therapist. Below is a worksheet I created. You can use it to help you start thinking about any changes you’d like to make in your life and ways to support yourself in making them.
One important key is to schedule your priorities. As you make choices, you may discover you have different parts of you that have conflicting wishes and priorities. Those can become obstacles. But, remember, the obstacles are the path! By moving forward, we can unearth those often unconscious habitual patterns of thinking and feeling and begin to make conscious choices.
PLANNING & CREATING A GOOD LIFE
IN ALIGNMENT WITH MY VISION AND VALUES
Pick 3 to 6 goals for this year.
Some might be about ways of being, some about achieving.
GOAL /Promise to myself BY WHEN (or daily/ongoing)? ________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
HABITS/ ROUTINES THAT WILL HELP ME ACHIEVE MY GOAL
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
MOTIVATION________________________________________________________
WHAT WILL I HAVE TO GIVE UP? (Behavior, habit or belief)
___________________________________________________________________
FIRST ACTION STEPS AND MILESTONES - Break down into smaller tasks and schedule
___________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Wishing you success!
Warmly,
Lisa Cottrell, LPC
Well Being Psychotherapy