Three Reasons To Stop Making New Years Resolutions

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Are you ready to stop making New Years resolutions?

Today, I want to give you three reasons why you should stop making New Year’s resolutions and help you create a better plan for this year that will help you on your journey to personal improvement.

Confession: I used to be an expert at making resolutions and immediately failing at them. But, if there is anything I really hate, it is feeling like a failure.

But what I hate more than feeling like a failure is feeling like a failure all year long!

I am sure you can relate to that.

There is something about a resolution that is so immediate, so final. A resolution seems so A-Z, with no steps from B-Y.

But life isn’t like that.

Three Reasons To Stop Making New Years Resolutions

Life is a journey made up of small steps toward a destination. That journey often has stops along the way and even detours that make us think we’ve lost our way.

Yet, I have found that the detours were really opportunities to learn a deeper lesson or to even unpack unnecessary baggage – all of which have helped me as I move further on my journey toward my goal.

The journey toward our destination is as important as the destination itself.

This is why I have stopped making New Year’s resolutions and have chosen to make goals instead.

1. Goals lead me to create steps of action.

By creating actionable steps to reach my goals, I am able to break down my giant goal into smaller goals that are easier to reach, thereby allowing myself to grow into that goal.

The ability to break my goal into steps of action gives me a sense of accomplishment each time I step closer to the destination.

2. Goals make the journey as important as the destination.

Take the goal of weight loss as an example.

I’ve been on a weight loss journey for several years now. Some may wonder why my journey has taken so long.

I was obese when I started, and I had a lot of bad habits I had to replace.

I haven’t rushed my weight loss on purpose because I realized that if I was going to make it stick this time, I would need to make these new habits a way of life.

The journey to losing weight has been as important as my destination.

Along the journey, I’ve learned to stop and consider what I’m putting in my mouth before I munch on it.

I’ve learned that rest and sleep are essential and not to be taken lightly. I’ve also learned to value exercise, although I still don’t always enjoy it.

These are lessons I hadn’t learned the other two times I shed pounds in record fashion.

3. Goals allow time for personal growth.

To be honest, if I don’t meet every goal by December 31, I won’t be disappointed in myself.  Rather, what I’ll want to see is how much closer I’ve come to my destination.

If I’ve made good progress, I’ll be more than satisfied.

Friends, if there is anything I’ve learned, it is that when we expect perfection from ourselves, the only thing we’ll get in return is frustration, stress, and disappointment.

I know, because I’ve lived for years being frustrated, stressed out, and disappointed in myself.

But if there is anything life has taught me is that I don’t have to be stressed out and frustrated. I am certainly not a disappointment: to God, to me, or to those around me who matter.

There is something very lovely about being comfortable with being perfectly imperfect.

There is something attractive about being in the presence of someone who is comfortable owning up to their imperfections.

And there is something very freeing about giving yourself permission to be that person!

I want to offer you a free New Year’s Goals Worksheet

One thing I want to caution you about, though….

Don’t rush it. Don’t sit down and just start quickly jotting down goals. Take your time, pray about each of them.

Ask yourself, “Why do I want to make this a goal? Is this an expectation God has of me, or is it an expectation I or someone else has placed on me?”

Once you’ve filled out the worksheet, put it somewhere you’ll see it often as inspiration to stay the course.

You can download this worksheet today by clicking here or on the image below.