New-Year Resolutions: Top 10 Hacks To Conquer Them

As 2016 draws to a close and we look forward to 2017, many of us will be making new-year resolutions.  Here are my top 10 hacks to make them work… this time

Approximately 50 percent of the population make new-year resolutions, according to the Journal of Clinical Psychology, the most popular being weight loss, exercise, stopping smoking, better money management and debt reduction.  Statistically, only 8% of the new-year resolutions will get achieved, and about half of the new-year resolutions made will make it past March.

As a part of 2016’s new-year resolutions, mine included weight loss, and managing my time and money better, such that I spent more time with my family and stop spending crazy money on hobbies (over 50 guitars and 20 microphones, not to mention other music equipment…)

At the end of this year, I’m blessed to say that I did achieve last year’s new year resolutions. The year started out shaky, I tried going to the gym regularly, but work quickly got in the way. I decided I needed to sell some of my music equipment online but realized I didn’t know how to sell anything and indeed had NEVER sold a thing before in my life!

Then in February this year, I signed up for the Six Figure Mentors. I would learn to trade guitars and set up some form of marketplace for guitars! Or so the vision went… But thanks to the education at the SFM, I learnt that that model would not have great ROI compared to other online models I could be investing my time and energy in.

In the goal setting exercise that you need to complete when you first set up your online business, I told my SFM coaches that I wanted to lose weight, and we set the goal at 30 pounds in 6 months. I also articulated my financial and time goals. With the help of my coaches and mentors, I met and exceeded every single one of those goals in the time that we set.

These are the lessons I learnt along the way, and these can be applied to your new-year resolutions.  So, here are my top 10 hacks for conquering those new-year resolutions in 2017:

New-year resolutions Hack #1: Make your goal a SMART goal

Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-Bound. Losing 30 pounds in 6 months is all of those things. We did the same for time and financial goals. For a more detailed look at SMART target setting, read my blog post here.

New-year resolutions Hack #2: New-year resolutions are no different from goal setting

If you think just thinking that or writing it down is going to motivate you to succeed – you’re mistaken. It won’t. You’ve taken 1 action – you wrote it down – now you need to take action daily.

New-year resolutions Hack #3: Take small steps to achieving your new year resolution

Again, like all big audacious goals, you need to break those down into little steps. If you’ve not read it, go back to my ladder example. If you’ve set your goal correctly (put your ladder on the right wall), then as long as you keep taking one step at a time up that ladder, you will get to the top of the wall. Many people quit when they can’t see the top of the wall after the first step, or they don’t break the goal down into small steps and just try to ‘jump’ the wall.  I’ve written a whole series on this.  Start with this article and read the following ones too.

New-year resolutions Hack #4: Celebrate each step – celebrate the small wins

If you’ve lost 1 pound, celebrate that, but don’t have a celebration burger, if you know what I mean… Don’t wait until you’ve reached the goal to celebrate, the small wins, each successful step is a cause for celebration. And celebrate not just the fact that you’ve achieved the step, but that you TOOK THE ACTION to get started.

New-year resolutions Hack #5: Start to make taking the action of the next step a habit

Habits make taking action effortless. Watch my video on forming good habits here. In the SFM, the 90 day challenges are designed to make habits of good business practices, so that your business success feels effortless. Using my weight loss as an example, I can never go back to eating the unhealthy food I used to eat because now it’s a habit.  I wrote an article and shot a video on that – it’s right here.

New-year resolutions Hack #6: Be present – don’t be caught up with past failures or anxiety about the future

Neither of those matter today. Live in the now. Enjoy the journey, enjoy each step. You’ll find that you’re starting to enjoy each step, and enjoying the journey is what will lead you to success, because it’s no longer a chore to get to the future goal. You’re enjoying the present.  Here’s an article on exactly that.

New-year resolutions Hack #7: Be grateful – practice gratitude for each step taken…

…for everyone who has taken the time to listen or help, and even for everyone who hasn’t – there are valuable lessons there to be learnt. Gratitude is sometimes mistaken for being soft, but gratitude will drive us to succeed.  I wrote an article and shot a video on having an attitude of gratitude, and you can get it right here.

New-year resolutions Hack #8: Allow yourself the space to fail

I’ve written about this so much that I can’t point you to a specific blog post. But remember this – everything that is worth doing, will require you to fail the first couple of times. That’s what sets you apart from everyone else.

New-year resolutions Hack #9: Have an accountability partner

This is really important, because you will need someone to pull you back up when you fail, and you will pull this person back up too. I found mine in the Six Figure Mentors 90 Day Blueprint Challenge Community, when we were both starting up our businesses.

New-year resolutions Hack #10: Get a mentor – someone who believes in you more than you believe in yourself

I’m so grateful for the numerous mentors in the SFM who saw what I could achieve even when I couldn’t. “A mentor is someone who sees more talent and ability within you, than you see in yourself, and helps bring it out of you.” – Bob Proctor

And most importantly HAVE FUN.

An all rounded SFM education can help you work through all of these and achieve your new-year resolutions.  This was the first time in my life I achieved mine.  This new year, achieve your new-year resolutions.  Try it risk free here.

Here’s to you, and a wonderful and blessed 2017!