Finally, it’s a New Year! Every year comes with resolutions.
Do you have a new list yet?
Are you going to recycle last year’s list which you have probably carried over for years now or have you given up on making New Year resolutions because you think it’s redundant as you have continually broken your resolution within the first week of the year. Whatever be your answer this article is for you.
Resolution in this context is defined as a formal expression of will and intent.
It shows commitment and purpose to achieving set goals or to stop a bad habit and replace them with good ones. Do you know the most consistent and most popular New Year resolution? It is undoubtedly weight loss.
This is shown in the high number of gym membership every first month of the year. However, as weeks pass by, life takes over.
Is making that resolve a bad thing? I bet you it isn’t. Make that list! It will certainly give you a sense of purpose.
Exercising for four weeks in a year is still better than not exercising at all.
The point I am trying to make here is making New Year resolutions, no matter how hopeless it may seem, is a good thing.
It shows willingness to change for the better and achieve set goals. Also, when you fail or don’t meet your target like stopping the exercise program or restarting the bad habit you resolved to stop, don’t beat yourself up.
New Year resolutions make you intentional about making your life better.
It offers an opportunity to be honest with one’s self about their current condition and what they desire it to be, make plans and set targets to meet them. It basically provides guidance to being the best version of one’s self.
New year resolutions are inherently hopeful and optimistic.
Having a positive vision of the future motivates you to take steps to achieving them and this in turn encourages and inspires others around you especially when they see results you have gotten from taking that step and sticking with it.
Imagine seeing a work colleague, who weighed over 150kgs dropping to 87kgs as a result of taking their resolutions seriously.
That will certainly inspire other staff and even clients or customers to want to also lose weight and be healthy.
Lastly, resolutions are also a sign of responsibility. Our actions impact others somehow, ether positively or negatively.
Take the weight loss case as an example or abstaining from alcohol. It will make the person healthier, save more money and be more responsible; in effect, their family and loved ones will be able to see them for longer as they won’t lose them due to ill health or save their family the stress of having to pick them up on the road side or in bars or stop them from hitting their spouses after getting drunk on a daily basis.
Clearly making New Year’s resolution is beneficial. However, they should not be used as a yardstick to measure success. This can dissuade people who are not able to achieve their goals from making new resolutions the following year.
Rather, using the ‘OKR’ methodology should be encouraged in setting New Year resolutions.
The OKR methodology also called Objective and Key Results methodology is an effective goal-setting and leadership tool for communicating what you want to accomplish and what milestones you’ll need to meet in order to accomplish it; personal goals inclusive.
While the objective is simply what you want to achieve, no more and no less.
Key results are specific, time-bound and measurable indicators that can be used to monitor the progress made towards an objective.
In short, while objectives are long term, key results are tasks that are done within a short period in a bid to achieve the objectives.
For example instead of saying “I will stop taking alcohol”, setting key results like “I will not take alcohol for a week” and increasing it over time will be better.
This will help with achieving some of the goals and provide an opportunity to restart even after failing.
Resolutions are good and should be encouraged.
However, they should be made the right way.
This can be done by setting realistic objectives, measurable and achievable key results; set timelines and plans to achieve them.
Not scribbling some words on a piece of paper and hoping you stick to it all year long.
Happy New Year, family and friends!
Ojelabi, the publisher of Freelanews, is an award winning and professionally trained mass communicator, who writes ruthlessly about pop culture, religion, politics and entertainment.
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