On January 1, many people make New Year’s resolutions. They set long-range goals and say, “I’ll work like crazy to achieve these goals, and then I’ll celebrate.”
At the beginning, we’re motivated. But we run out of steam when things get hard – or tedious – or boring. Things take longer than we expect, require more energy, and have more unexpected problems. The celebration is so far away that it doesn’t keep us going, so we give up.
We need quicker celebrations.
Celebrations give us something to look forward to. They provide the fuel to keep going.
If we only have a reward at the end, it’s like only eating breakfast and expecting that one meal to last all day. We need regular refueling to stay energized, so we eat several times a day.
Without regular rewards, we sabotage our efforts to achieve our goals.
Want to increase your chance of achieving your big goals? Try this:
- Set a clearly defined long-range goal – maybe for this time next year. Define:
Where you are now.
Where you want to be.
The exact date you want to be there.
- Determine the value of accomplishing the goal.
Why do you want to achieve it?
- Decide what you’ll do to celebrate at the end.
Make it big. Make it specific. Make it motivating.
- Decide where you need to be in 30 days to reach your long-range goal – then plan an appropriate reward.
- Decide where you need to be in 7 days to reach your 30-day goal – then plan an appropriate reward.
- Decide where you need to be at the end of today to reach your 7-day goal – then plan an appropriate reward.
Don’t take any reward until you complete that step – but be sure to take it. Those small rewards provide the fuel for big results.
Plan a big celebration when you reach your goal.
But plan little parties along the way.
Those little parties could make the difference in reaching your goal.
Ready to party? (Comment)