No New Year Resolutions. Create A New Year Action Plan

I highly prefer action plans than resolutions. I hear it all the times, people want to make New Year resolutions, or should I say New Year replications. Let me clarify because those resolutions hardly stick. Despite all the enthusiasm to get through the start of a New Year, I always find it impractical to complete New Year resolutions. With that being said, I stop making them. I don’t even talk about that anymore.

Related: Hard Work. Determination. Achieve Your Life Goals.

Hence, my focus is now on New Year’s ACTION PLANS. Yup, I prefer to call it that way. It’s more realistic and achievable. So what is an action plan? An action plan provides step-by-step guidelines that help an individual achieves their goal. In this case, let’s say there are a few things we dream to accomplish in 2018. Don’t just say those things, think of the steps and phases you need to undertake in order to achieve those dreams.

So the first thing and most important thing to do is to create an action plan. Some questions to ask in the process of sketching that plan. What do I want to realize this year? What are my short-term goals? Long term goals? What is the focus this year? Where am I now and where do I want to be at the end of next year? What is the most important thing I want to achieve this New Year? As you jog down those questions, you will come to realize the exact steps you need to take in order to make your dreams become a reality.

Many experts in self-development embrace the word “realistic” when it comes to goal setting. Why realistic? Because some goals are simply unrealistic. For instance, you can’t wish to lose 15 pounds in one month without exercising or changing your diet. So how are you going to lose that weight or be healthier? Just saying.

What you need to do, right now, is grab a pen and join me in sketching a plan for 2018. Set some achievable and realistic goals. Then you will create a plan to realize those goals of yours.

Perhaps a 6-month goal —save $2000 into an emergency plan by putting aside roughly $84 every week into a separate account like Mint, my favorite. You could also set monthly goals like spending only $100 monthly in outings. Remember there are short-term goals and long-term goals. Some short-term goals are runners to achieve long-term visions. It depends on how you set up your agenda.

Above all, after you sketch that plan, pray on it. Let me repeat, present your plan to the Almighty so He can review and finalize the plan for you —for God’s plans are always better than ours.

Alright. Now let’s get to it. We can’t let 2018 start without a plan. Grab a pen and let’s work!