What’s on my mind? New year’s resolutions

January is something of a strange month. In the western world particularly, it signifies the new year, and we see people think about new starts, fresh beginnings, things they want to change. It’s the time that people set out their new year’s resolutions.

I happened to be browsing a news website recently and they had (somehow!) gathered a picture of the five most popular and consistently used new year’s resolutions in the world. Here they are…

1. Get in shape / lose some weight

This is apparently the number one new year’s resolution. Maybe because people have overeaten during the festive season or got stressed during high-pressure holidays, and let’s face it, getting in shape and having a balanced lifestyle has many benefits – increased energy, stamina and improved mood through the release of endorphins.

2. Learn something new

Perhaps a new year brings new possibilities and what says new beginnings like learning something new. A new hobby, a game, a language or skill. All keep your brain super active and you motivated. Variety really is the spice of life after all.

3. Spend less, save more

Many people break the bank around Christmas, spending more on gifts or feasts or vacations. Many people also get paid a little earlier in December meaning that January consequently feels pretty tough financially. So it’s no wonder that spending less and saving more makes the list.

4. Break addictions

Smoking, drinking, gambling, social media – there are plenty of addictions out there. Addiction is defined as not having control over doing, taking or using something to the point where it could be harmful to you – so stopping or slowing anything that has control over you, seems an eminently sensible thing to aim for.

5. Read more books

Now you all know I’m a reader and would heartily recommend reading more to anyone – what better way to learn and grow – to experience new people, new worlds and new ideas.

For me personally though, I have made no resolutions. I’m actually not a huge fan. Let me explain why.

Firstly I am a firm believer in setting goals, at work and in my personal life. But if we are to set goals for ourselves they need to be a bit more specific than “spend less”.?

Good goals need purpose – a reason for pursuing them. Read more books. Why? What do you seek to gain, pleasure? Knowledge? Escape? Or something else entirely? Surely it’s essential to build a picture of what you want to achieve, then set the goals and milestones that you need to attain along the way.

Now let’s think about goals; shouldn’t they be specific? I’m pretty sure Usain Bolt’s training programme didn’t say “run fast”, it set out exactly what speeds and distances he needed to reach, day by day and week by week and I’m certain that it set out distinct milestones along the way.

So, let’s talk about milestones.?

We use the word in business today to mean the point at which an activity gets delivered, but the word originally described something physical. Stones set in the ground that had etched on them the number of miles they were from a particular city or town. They were for travellers to help with navigation and they always, always had numbers on them.

Surely our personal and professional goals and milestones should share these principles?

I don’t think “get in shape” helps anyone get anywhere. Build the capability to run 5k before September, now that’s a goal and a milestone. Train for three hours every week to achieve a deadlift of 80kg before your summer vacation, that’s a goal and a milestone.

The same website that set out the most popular resolutions stated that evidence suggests 60-70% of all new year’s resolutions are abandoned before the end of February. And, of course this happens?- as without purpose the reasons why someone has started on their path, quickly become vague and not at all motivating. Without proper goals and milestones there is no way to track progress, make adjustments where necessary and celebrate the wins – and that is, in my view, a recipe for failure.

So no new year’s resolutions for me. But goals, count me in! Specific activities delivered to specific timescales, driven by a compelling purpose – that’s something I can buy into. And as we set out our corporate objectives and key results for the years ahead and our personal goals and objectives for 2023, I hope it’s an approach that you can buy into too.