Do you struggle to make New Year’s resolutions? Here are a few ideas that might help you make the most of 2022.
4 QUARTERS : Focus on the next 90 days (the first quarter), not the full year. For most people, 365 days is too long a time horizon to stay motivated. Setting 90-day goals creates the right amount of urgency to get you going and a short-enough duration to stay motivated.
3 ACHIEVEMENT GOALS*: Identify the three most important goals to be accomplished in the next 90 days. These may be personal or work-related. The key is to make sure the goals are measurable. You might write something like, “Submit book proposal to my publisher” or “Pay off $5,000 in credit card debt by February 15th” or “Spend weekend in January in Whistler with my wife” or “Lose 12lbs by March 31st.” Choose three important achievements that are measurable and able to be accomplished in the next 90 days. Make sure the goals are important to you. It is hard to stay motivated on meaningless pursuits. You know you created the right goal when writing it down motivates you to act on it.
2 HABIT GOALS*: Habit goals are slightly different than achievement goals. Instead of accomplishing one achievement, habit goals are about developing consistent activities such as prayer, reading, exercise, etc. Good habit-goals identify a specific activity and measurable frequency to drive behavior. For example, “Pray 45 minutes every morning at 5:15am Monday – Friday and 7am on Saturday and Sunday” or “Drink 8 glasses of water every day” or “Go to confession every Saturday” or “Write 500 words every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.” Habit goals are not about accomplishing a specific, measurable task or goal, habit goals are about developing consistent habits you want in your life for a fixed quarter so that in 90 days you can say, “I have new habits!”
1 VIRTUE: Think of one virtue that you want to strengthen over the next 90 days. For most people, this virtue is the opposite of the vice that is most difficult to overcome. For example, to overcome sensuality, you might want to focus on purity. To overcome sloth, you might want to develop your proactivity, tenacity, or resilience. Maybe you desire to be less timid or fearful and want to strengthen your courage. Whatever your situation, choose only one virtue. Once identified, write down 2-3 sentences that clarify what the virtue means to you and why it is important to develop. Then identify a few specific behaviors that you will commit to over the next 90 days. It is helpful to choose a frequency to review your progress in developing that virtue. For example, “I will evaluate my progress every night before going to bed” or “Once a week during my weekly planning session on Saturday morning” or “I will evaluate my progress every second Sunday before going to confession.”
The secret to significant transformation is incremental progress over time. Breaking down the year into quarterly chunks, focusing on both achievement and habit goals and strengthening the virtues within you, are noble pursuits. Go for it in 2022.
*I am grateful for Michael Hyatt‘s Full Focus Planning system and the training provided on Achievement & Habit goals.
