Tag: resolutions

You’re just over the first few weeks of the New Year. So, how has the "new you" been shaping up?

Most commonly, many have resolved to lose weight or exercise more. Sometimes we pledge to give up a chronic behavior that we know is not healthy, such as drinking alcohol, smoking, or over spending. The statistics vary, but no matter which reference you choose, the success rate of resolutions is dismal; ranging from approximately 8-45%. That means over half and probably closer to 90% of those who make a resolution will fail.

New Year's resolutions seldom change. Lose weight, save money, exercise regularly and spend more time with the family are all great starts to our yearly goals. With the economy experiencing ebb and flow, it may be a good time to include some office resolutions as well. Here are a few suggestions for those that already have a job and other's who may be looking for a one:

1. Get to work on time: Don't take for granted the importance of starting the work day off on the right foot. The excuse, "bad traffic," can only be used so many times before your boss and coworkers start catching on.

Every year, we make them. Every year, we break some—maybe all of them. Workout more, eat better, spend less money, those are the most common ones. And while self-care and self-improvement are certainly worthwhile goals, there’s one area that many people overlook when it comes to New Year’s resolutions: their marriage.

Resolving to improve certain areas of a marriage is just as important as resolving to be physically healthier or eat better.

It’s that time of the year where we set our good intentions for creating lasting New Year’s resolutions. Maybe you want to stop smoking, get out of a bad relationship, lose weight, or quit a dead-end job.

But why is it that New Year’s resolutions generally don’t work? Because they come from your head and not from your heart. What does that mean? Willing something to happen never works. Unless your internal message is loud and clear you're not going to respond with any real, effective behavior changes. And in order to facilitate change, the pain you’re suffering has to be greater than the pain of change.

How are your New Year's Resolutions going? Are you successfully achieving your goals? Or have you failed already? If you are in the miniscule percentage of people who are successfully achieving your goals, congratulations!

For everyone else, don't give it a second thought if you have already failed and have decided, "To heck with that stuff anyway!"

New Year's Resolutions are a set-up for failure. Changing anything in life when you do so with intention is hard enough, never mind trying to change something based on faulty thinking and faulty planning.

How long has it been since Cupid’s arrow bulls-eyed your heart? On second thought, does Cupid even know where you live now? Is Valentine’s Day just like any other? If so, chances are that romance has—pardon the pun—Gone with the Wind. The wind is what buoys and thrills you to romantic heights. Now you find it has gusted away in Cupid’s wake. It happens. Life sometimes gets in the way and snuffs out passion. Things—even necessary ones—can sidetrack romance until it gets all muddled and loses its way.

Why is it that we all want to be in a relationship? Because when you strip it down, being part of a pair helps you know that you matter to someone else. Face it, there are millions of people in this world and having a partner lets you know that someone cares about you and that you’re accepted.

This desire for feeling connected all starts right from the beginning when you are born and in your childhood—there’s a need for attachment to a caring figure. When couples come in for help, the biggest problem I see is a sense of disconnection and feeling that he or she does not matter to his or her partner.