For a goal to be successful, it usually needs 3 parts. Most people, when they make New Year's Resolutions, do not meet any of these 3 parts. Lately my friends have been getting more conscious about part 1, but I still feel that parts 2 and 3 are missing.
Part 1: Make the goal specific.
It should be specific, and measurable, so it's easy to figure out if you've obtained it. "Lose weight" is vague, whereas "Lose 30 pounds" or "Lose at least 5 pounds each month" is more specific.
However, there has to be more, which is where the other 2 parts come into play. The problem with most personal goals / New Year's resolutions is that there's not enough motivation, positive or negative, behind them. Most people give no additional motivation towards achieving the goal, and make it easier to fail.
Part 2: Not achieving the goal means consequences.
At work, if you don't meet your goals, you get a bad review, which could lead to you getting fired. As much as being overweight may have its consequences (perhaps your doctor told you that you are more likely to have a heart attack, or your knees hurt when you walk for more than 5 minutes), if the consequences were enough motivation, you would not need to set a goal or make a resolution....it would be habit, part of your daily routine.
To wit: Losing weight can be difficult, setting routines usually is not. "Lose weight" is often the theme of goals/resolutions, but "brush my teeth" is usually not, because it's easy to do AND the consequences are undesirable.
This is very important, because often the consequence is "I'm upset with myself" which can lead to more "not doing" the goal. If you can easily repent, you will have less of the "being upset" and more motivation to achieve the goal.
Part 3: Achieving the goal means rewards.
Sometimes the reward is the inverse of the consequence and vice versa. For example, "not losing your job" might be the reward for work goals. Usually, though, the reward is "get a raise" or something similar.
It is with these three parts in mind that I try to think of how I can be resolved to do something.
Let's take "workout 30 minutes, 3 days per week" as an example.
Every week I do that, I should get a reward. Perhaps I allow myself to use the gym's hot tub on the 3rd (and subsequent) visits that week. Or perhaps I allow myself to sleep in late, or ignore the phone on the day of the 3rd visit, etc.
Every week I fail to do that, I should suffer a consequence. Perhaps I have to do a household chore I hate, that could be done weekly without being silly (say, vacuuming or dusting or cleaning the bathroom, or having a list of chores such as "cleaning the fridge")
OK, so that's set. Now, the other problem is that, while this goal is very specific and measurable, what "counts"? If I'm sick with the flu for a week, do I get the consequence? What if I'm traveling for business and am in a training all day, and preparing workshops for the next day's training at night? What if I do 30 minutes one day, 25 minutes the next, and 40 minutes the third day? What constitutes working out? What if I'm traveling and walking all day? Does that count? Does a 2-hour trip to the mall count as a workout?
What if I'm "too busy" to work out, and similarly "too busy" to reap the consequence? Can I "save" my rewards (or even my consequences) and do something big and not small things?
These are all important questions, and as a manager I have to have an answer to all of these (granted, a lot of times it's "it depends", and for personal resolutions you're only cheating yourself if you allow an exception you "shouldn't", but.....).
So, those of you who have New Year's Resolutions....what are your consequences and rewards?
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hopeful
accomplished
freaked out
bored
