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Listed below are common New Year’s resolutions along with some important questions to help you plan ahead for a successful year. Click here for tips on How to Keep Your New Year’s Resolution.

Health

• Lose or gain weight – make sure to break your weight plan into smaller attainable goals.
• Quit a bad habit: smoking, drinking, etc. – be sure to announce your plans to family and friends for support and accountability.
• Healthy Eating – decide not only what you are going to eat, decide what you are not going to eat.
• Fitness – what will your fitness rountine be and how will you hold yourself accountable?

Family/Life

• Spend more time with children, spouse, or extended family – what do you want to change about your current schedule? How will change your schedule to meet your goal?
• Plan and take a vacation – Where will you go? How much will it cost? How long will it take to save? What preparations do you need to make?
• Create and maintain a budget – where will you record your budget? How will you measure your success?
• Reduce debt – how much debt will you pay off this year? How will you budget for your debt payments each of the 12 months in the year?
• Save money – how much will you save every pay period? How will you hold yourself accountable for resolution all year?
• Reduce stress – what are your biggest stressers? What changes can you make that will directly affect your life?
• Donate/Volunteer – how much money or how much time can you devote each month? What causes are immediately most important?

Career Related

• Get a promotion/raise – what position/salary are you trying to attain? What steps are necessary to reach this goal? What is your timeline?
• Change jobs/career - what do you want to be when you grow up?
• Further education – what educational qualifications do you desire? What steps are required to achieve your goal?
• Reduce stress at work – what are your biggest stressers at the workplace? What can you proactively change to reduce your stress?

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How to Keep Your New Year’s Resolution

Photo by Woodley Wonderworks

1. Make sure you’ve decided on just one goal for the year. If you try to make too many changes in your life, you can’t narrow your focus and you can easily get overwhelmed. Choose the goal most important to you.
2. Break your resolution into measurable goals. For example, if you are trying to lose weight, decide how much you would like to lose each week or month. If you are trying to save money, how much money will you put aside each pay period? According to a Quirkology Study, men are 22% more likely to keep their resolution if they set measurable goals.
3. Plan for setbacks. What will you do if you do not meet your “measurable goals”? Don’t let setbacks halt your resolution in its tracks. Plan ahead for necessary adjustments. Knowing in advance how you will conquer problems will keep you motivated through the rough patches.




4. Make your resolution public. According to Quirkology, women are 10% more likely to keep their resolution if they share their goals and get support from friends. Keep your friends and family updated on your progress. Join an internet forum related to your resolution and announce your plan for the year.
5. Track your progress. Since your resolution has been divided into measurable goals, it will be easy for you to track these goals. Decide where you will physically track your progress such as a notebook, your computer, or an online source. Joe’s Goals is great place to track individual goals. Decide how often you will update your support group with your progress.