Are you looking at making a New Year’s Resolution or setting a goal?

Think small to make Big changes!

Step by step, a little each day, can win the day and ultimately your year!

New Year’s resolutions and setting goals is a great way to help you focus on what you want to achieve.

Taking action is then key, gaining momentum and keeping going, which for many, is the part where the wheels come off and you can be left feeling despondent and like you have ‘failed’ somehow.

So, my advice to you would be, start by being Kind to yourself and look after your well-being.

Create balance in your life by creating valuable time for You.

The small things you do to look after yourself - really matter.

Things like:

Each weekday swap in one healthier food choice.

Resolve to give yourself some quiet time every day, even 10 minutes a day makes a difference, maybe to read, enjoy your tea or coffee in peace, have a bath, to be mindful & just be.

Take a walk to appreciate nature or do some exercise.

Practice gratitude each evening – think about or write down 3 good things from your day in a lovely notebook, or maybe write them on strips of paper and post into a jar and watch it fill up.

All these little things, done daily, literally give you ‘time out’ to ground yourself in the present and breathe.

Over time you will notice big changes in how you feel in mind and body. You will find you are more productive too.

When you are feeling good, things go better. You’ll be inclined to be kinder, think more positively and therefore make decisions that are more likely to produce better results – helping you feel happier and so it goes on…

The knock-on effect of these little tweaks, ripples out far and wide in good ways.

If you feel happier, you generally smile more, this could have a lovely impact on someone else’s day, lifting them up, meaning they smile more, they could then show more patience with someone, who then feels appreciated and their stress or pressure eases, meaning they don’t snap at the next person, who now feels a little more confident and goes home with a smile feeling good, resolving to be even better tomorrow…you get the picture.

These small almost intangible daily changes over time - produce Big results.

Small steps or changes work well for many of us, because our normal mind process is to resist change, to keep us safe, due to the change being a threat because it’s too big, the unknown and all the accompanying ‘what if’s’ and worries about it going wrong or not being good enough.

However, smaller things don’t pose a threat, because can you do that small thing - right?

‘Yes! I CAN do that small step … it’s a piece of cake!’

The secret is to write down your little daily ‘TO DO’s’ and put them all over the place as reminders, in your diary, on or inside cupboard doors, in your office, by your bed, on your mirror.

E.G., ‘Make one healthier choice a day’

‘Every day I have at least 10 minutes of Time Out for Me’

‘Be KIND’

‘I CAN’

‘Go me – I’ve got this!’

Whatever works for you

Also, with food, have the healthier choices on your shopping list, then have them as an easy to grab choice at home or work. Have books to hand, schedule in a walk or exercise into your diary, especially if you get busy. See it as essential time due to the overall benefits it gives you – stress relief – healthier and fitter – clearer mind = being more productive.

Be good to yourself and be your own Best Friend, let your minds’ self-talk be an encouraging coach – speak kindly to and of yourself.

If you find any of this difficult to do, then buddy up with someone, to help each other out and keep each other positive and motivated.

If negative thoughts have the habit of whirring around your mind – get a piece of paper – write them all down – then rip them up.

Literally, take each day as a new day.

You are human and you will have days that are not so good, or where you don’t feel OK, which is normal and OK – remember to be kind to yourself, especially on these days. When you practice daily gratitude – even a ‘pants’ day will have had good moments, or people in it. The very important part of this little exercise of daily gratitude, is that it helps you to build on your overall positivity, confidence and resilience to daily life and you find you get up and dust yourself off quicker, ready to carry on the next day.

Even a 1% change daily makes a huge difference over time

The Japanese practice Kaizen – which means continuous ‘change for the better’

Another way to look at how much of a difference small changes can make is the 1 in 60 rule.

In aviation, for every 60 miles a pilot travels, they will end up 1 mile off course = 1?

The pilot will constantly adjust and re-adjust a journey, to stay on track – a flight is never in a straight line.

Using this as an analogy in the positive sense – by making a purposeful 1? change – over time you can change your destination - reach a new goal – make a marked change with only a little daily effort on your part – How good is that?

So, do you feel able to make some small changes, small tweaks and shifts to get the Big results you want?

‘If you do what you’ve always done – you get what you’ve always got’

Let’s change that to:

‘Every single day, in a small way – I make a Big difference’

Think about what you may like to change or achieve this year and then break it right down into achievable little bite sized things you can do on a daily basis. Each week you can track what progress you have made and then do your little 1? tweaks to keep you on the course you want to be on.

Initially you may need to spend a day thinking about and writing down your resolution, goals or potential achievements.

Writing them down is an important step or making a vision board full of pictures and inspiring words, to help keep you focused on what you would like to achieve.

After that, take 10 minutes at the end of every week to check and tweak your progress.

As you get going and start to notice the changes or start fulfilling a project or goal – you will generate a momentum which motivates you to keep going, helping you to feel good and more inclined to keep taking the next steps.

‘How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time’

Another important note* whatever it is you want to achieve – Do it for YOU.

Be sure of WHY you’re doing it and that you are happy with what you want to change or achieve.

Go for your dreams and Think BIG – why not?

Then take those little steps everyday to get to where you want to be – You are worth it.

Wishing you all the best for the New Year ahead

Andrea

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