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Now that the #NewYearNewMe shimmer has dulled, the sparkle of the “roaring ‘20s” has gone and the 10-year challenges on social media have come to a screeching halt, are you having a hard time keeping your New Year’s resolutions? Were the first few days filled with promise, but you’re now back to old habits and business as usual? Or worse, did you make yourself the promise to get back on it next Monday and that Monday never came?

If this sounds remotely like you, I want to congratulate you on being completely and delightfully human. If you have wobbled, bobbled or fell off completely, you are not alone. According to U.S. News contributor and coaching thought-leader, Dr. Joseph Luciani, 80% of those who set New Year’s resolutions have fallen off the bandwagon by the second week of February.

In my accountability practice, Success Bully, I consistently see the same challenges with sticking to New Year’s resolutions across the board whether small or large goals. Attempting to reinvent your entire self in 365 days, identifying goals (but not the process to achieve them) and (my personal favorite) jumping ship too soon are the biggest deterrents to getting things done.

The good news is you don’t need a symbolic moment in time to start fresh on your goal. You can recommit at any time. Just don’t quit.

If you have been following me, you know that I love alliterations and keeping my tips snackable and actionable. Here are my “Triple A's” to get you back in the game:

Assessment

Take an honest inventory of where you are with your New Year’s resolutions. Assess the actions (no matter how small) that worked for you. Most importantly, try to understand where or how you lost your footing. Did you approach the goal in large chunks that were too unwieldy to maintain (like starting with 45 minutes of cardio at the gym when you haven’t worked out since Kanye’s ‘Graduation’)? Or did you have one bad day and decide to scrap the whole goal? Take a moment to fine-tune the best way to use your resources, time and energy.

Pro-tip: Pick one high impact goal and blow that out of the water.

Action

Goal attainment is made up of a series of consistent and strategic actions. I highly recommend taking a snack-sized bite at your goal daily. As you build momentum, build on the size of your action. Small steps, even baby steps, add up over time.

However, if you have completely disengaged and all but abandoned your 2020 vision, I have a whole different suggestion. To get your blood pumping and to get over your self-manufactured fear, take radical action for a radical outcome. When you think of your big resolution, what is that one part that gives you a sweat mustache? Do that. It’s like jumping off a high dive. After you take that first big leap, everything else is easier.

Accountability

Find an accountability partner or group to help you stay on track. According to a recent study by the Association for Talent Development, you dramatically increase the probability of completing a goal to 95% with specific accountability appointments.

I encourage you to partner with that friend that will call you on your BS. You can even find a Facebook group dedicated to your goal and post that you are looking for an accountability partner. In my experience as someone that does this for a living, the best accountability partnerships are rooted in transparency and commitment. You want honesty (even if it hurts your feelings) and someone that will dedicate time to track, strategize and celebrate with you.

If you have had the best intentions to make 2020 your best year, it is not too late. Don’t quit. Recommit today and each day going forward until you have achieved it. If you want to do something different this year by mapping a strategy and sticking to it, lean into accountability.

Check me out on successbully.com and follow me on all the socials @successbully for more details on our programming.

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Success Bully is an elite accountability practice dedicated to supporting high-performing “Type A" people make progress with goal attainment in their personal and professional lives. We offer strategic goal setting and accountability programming for 1:1 clients, small groups and corporate partners. Check out our next group coaching for gifted procrastinators, called “Get the F Out Your Own Way,” launching the second week of February.

Keita Williams

Writing since February 2018 · 3 stories contributed