The new year has just begun, and perhaps you, like more than a third of people, have set yourself one or more good resolutions for 2024. Improving physical fitness, economic situation, or mental health are common goals that most people set at the beginning of a new year. I quietly include myself in this statistic, and for 2024, I have decided to be ambitious: I want to continue to grow my coaching business and podcast (I have also added a new page to the website dedicated to the podcast! Explore it here). But I also want to learn to play guitar well and maintain good physical and mental fitness. In short, I have a broad spectrum of goals, and you can witness my progress!
However, the determination, energy, and conviction we showed on January 1 tend to wear off fairly quickly. According to a statistic in Forbes (read it here), these resolutions rarely make it past the 4th month of the year. Some sources even cite January 17 or the second Friday in February as the days when most goals are abandoned.
Of explanations, we can find multiple and all valid: personal or work circumstances, boredom, too many sacrifices, and you name it. Yet, searching online, there are multiple tools, guides, and tips to help keep the commitment made... but, apparently, they do not seem particularly compelling.
That's why, to support my path toward achieving my resolutions for 2024, I have identified some alternative and innovative ways to make everything lighter, fun, and different from the usual stuff. I have decided to share this list with you in the hope that it may be helpful to you.
The title of your year: Imagine your 2024 as a movie, TV series, comic book, or even a song where you are the main character. What is the title you would give to this year-long adventure? Obviously, the title must somehow refer to the goals you set for yourself. For example, I imagine myself as the protagonist of a TV series titled "Harmony of Waves." I chose it because the sea obviously plays an essential role in my coaching business (which, not coincidentally, is called "Master Your Sea"). The word harmony, on the other hand, refers to the guitar, to the physical and mental fitness I want to maintain over the next 12 months (and well beyond), and more generally, to the balance between work and personal life to which I aspire.
The "No Zero Days" philosophy: Every goal requires perseverance and persistence. This means that every day is good for making progress. To prevent even a single day from being "lost," a helpful approach is "no zero days," that is, doing something every day toward achieving a goal. No matter how big or small, it is crucial to do it. In my case, if one day I am too busy with other activities and don't have time to practice the guitar, I can pick it up and play a chord, and that's it. This will help me focus on what I want to achieve even when circumstances seem not to allow it.
Life is a Game: Turn your path to the annual goal into a game to make it more fun. You can set challenges, levels, and points to be earned with each progress, with rewards and rewards per new goal achieved. If you have imagination, you can think of the difficulties you may encounter along your path as obstacles to overcome and opponents to beat. This can make the process more engaging and fun and allow you to invite friends and family into your adventure. And so learning a new arpeggio on the guitar becomes the key to "opening a door" to a secret room where loot is hidden! Or, every practice is a fight against the evil monster who wants to turn me into an amoeba. Plus, whenever I reach a new level, I can buy a new vinyl!
Resume of failures: In addition to celebrating successes (which is essential, as I wrote in a previous blog you can find here), document and reflect on stumbles along the way without blaming yourself. This unconventional method helps you learn from mistakes and understand which areas of growth need more attention from us. It also prevents a small failure from becoming a source of frustration and demotivation, leading to abandonment of the goal. I, for example, may one day find myself having eaten a little too much at a restaurant, having compromised my fitness. I know I have a sweet tooth and have little stamina when faced with a good tiramisu. In this case, the lesson might be to avoid asking for the dessert menu and go directly to pay the bill!
The opposite day: Once a month, do something completely different than what you normally do. This helps you explore new perspectives and possibilities and diversify your approach to achieving your annual goal, encouraging flexibility and adaptability. If my goal is to maintain my mental fitness through structured activities such as meditation, reading, or puzzle solving, on the "opposite day," I might engage in more spontaneous activities. Instead of a meditation session, I might spend time on a creative activity such as drawing, which is also a crucial aspect of mental fitness.
Learn to teach: Commit to teaching someone else what you are learning. You can do this through a workshop, blogging, or tutoring. Teaching forces you to understand and articulate more clearly what you are learning, thus reinforcing your goals. So, if you want to learn to play guitar, you already know who to call!!!
Week of thought: Originally popularized by Bill Gates, the idea of a "week of thought" (or even a weekend or a single day) is to set aside a dedicated period for deep, uninterrupted thinking and reflection. The main goal is to break away from the daily hustle and bustle and immerse oneself in learning, strategizing, and contemplating more far-reaching ideas or goals. For example, if my goal is to improve fitness, a "Think Week" might involve researching fitness strategies, planning a detailed workout regimen, exploring nutritional plans, and reading inspiring stories.
Take a picture and smile: Create a visual record of the journey toward your annual goal. Take a nice, smiling picture of yourself every day or every week doing something that gets you to your goal! Unlike the usual method of jotting down progress in a journal, this approach allows you to capture critical moments or the achievement of milestones, providing a more vivid and motivating way to track the journey. The best examples can be found on social media, filled with posts from people who have consistently recorded their progress and created an album telling the story of their incredible success. Get inspired yourself!
Always remember that the journey to achieving your goals is as important as the destination. Every small step is part of your big adventure in 2024. Be creative and flexible, and enjoy every moment of this journey.
And if you want, write in the comments what your 2024 goals are!
Good luck, and may this be a year full of extraordinary success for you!