I was never a big fan of doing New Year’s resolutions but I tried them for a couple of years. What I found was that in a lot of cases they simply didn’t get done. Some did, sure, but the vast majority didn’t. There were various reasons, but the majority of the time the reason was bound into the fact that I didn’t plan on how to get started. So I had goals but no first steps in how to accomplish those goals.
When I started thinking through setting goals but having first steps, I realized that this was something I was doing continuously anyway, so a yearly goal setting exercise didn’t make a lot of sense. It wasn’t often enough. As a result, I tend to take time more periodically, at least once a quarter, to stop and do a more comprehensive review. By doing a periodic review like this, I get a better track on how I’m doing with my goals. I also have a chance to assess whether or not my goals are still appropriate. For instance, work goals might change because of a change in responsibilities, such as when I went from senior DBA to infrastructure architect at the end of 2001 or when I returned to being a senior DBA a few years ago.
It is good to do a review of how things are going and it is also good to set goals to challenge yourself. However, if you only do this once a year, chances are you’ll find yourself falling short when it comes back around to the next year. A more frequent review period serves better if you’re serious about accomplishing the resolutions you’ve set. Also, don’t consider changes you want to make in life, but other areas that simply need to get done. For instance, I know that for work I need to put serious time in obtaining a couple of professional certifications. This isn’t a traditional area for consideration with respect to New Year’s resolutions, but it’s definitely something I need to invest time and effort in.
I tend to agree with you on this. I haven’t made any resolutions the last few years, and no goals this year. At least not yet.
I do think that this can be a time to turn over a new leaf, or make a new start in some area of your life, but you can’t make the goal along. It should be something you have been considering for some time, and as you make the resolution, you do have to create the plan to begin following through. And then review this every month or two as you progress.
The New Year is nothing more than a marker. If it works for you as a way to make a change, that’s fine. However don’t wait until next Jan 1 to make a change in your life if you think it’s needed.
Setting a deadline to “start” something is a good way to set yourself up for failure. It’s why so many resolutions don’t pan out. You overload yourself on your bad behavior thinking that you can just flip a switch right up until the time comes to make good on your resolution. It’s self defeating, and when you slip on one resolution it feeds back into being depressed about slipping on that resolution, then you slip on other resolutions, and so on.
Set goals, take steps to achieve them but never wait to start. Do a little something to get started immediately. That sense of progress usually helps a great deal to sticking with something.