New Year’s Resolutions…What, is it that time again?

Large semi truck hauling freight on the open highway in the western USA under an evening sky.

New Year’s Resolutions…What, is it that time again?

New Years, it’s a great time to take another look at things from a different perspective. Hopefully over the holidays you set aside a little downtime for you and your family and took the time to create some new memories that are going to be ones that will last a lifetime. Isn’t it funny, the older we get the quicker a year seems to fly by? Remember those New Year’s resolutions you set for yourself this time last year? How many of them did you actually stick with? If you’re like many people, something may have come up (like life) that may have possibly changed the direction on where you wanted to be today. Many of us finish the year with indulgences and celebration, and then start the New Year with the best of intentions and sincere resolutions to do things better.

Unfortunately these good intentions often end up in frustration and disappointment. Sometimes we find ourselves moving further away from our goals in the New Year rather than accomplishing our resolutions. I think one of the main reasons we struggle with our resolutions is our days become so hectic that we can lose focus on what really matters most. For a number of years, I have been involved in a group we call “Talent Bank”. This is a group of other like-minded individuals who get together once a month to talk about how we can improve in our business and discuss some of the personal goals we want to achieve. In a way it’s really just an accountability group but it seems to work well for all of us. When we originally set up this group, we wanted to be sure that it was more than just business related goals that we discussed to live a more balanced life.

Think of it this way. If you had a bicycle wheel with only a few spokes or if the spokes were only on the one side of the wheel, how balanced would the wheel actually be? Part of the process we use to live a more balanced life includes setting goals in the following seven areas of our lives: Family Health Spiritual Social Educational Business Financial As an example, one of my health goals a few years ago was to get in better shape. To help me stay focused on this goal, I committed to working out 3-4 times per week and found myself an accountability partner that had a similar goal. The first few weeks were tough (and painful) but we kept going and we kept each motivated on why we wanted to achieve this goal. Knowing I had to pick my buddy Ray up at 6:30AM on the days we committed to work out, really helped me stay focused when some of the mornings my body was telling me to just hit the snooze button for few extra minutes of shut eye.

As a result, I am happy to say that I have maintained my work out schedule… most of the time. For the times that I did slip, I found it was much easier getting back to it because I knew I needed to report back to my group on how I was doing. Without the initial accountability that got me going, I’m not sure I would have stuck with it this long. This year, I’m adding to my health goal by taking a closer look at the food that I’m eating on a daily basis. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not constantly eating junk food, but I do know I can definitely improve on the food choices I do make each day which in turn should give me even more energy. I’m also working with a nutritionist (www.healthytrucker.com) that is helping me make smarter choices and helping me stay focused on what really matters most. So what about you? What’s your current situation? Are you having a hard time staying focused on what really matters most? Do you need to form a talent bank type group to help you remain focused on your goals? Maybe not, but if you do have certain goals that you really want to achieve, why not find someone that will agree to hold you accountable? The more accountability you have I guarantee you, the closer you will get to achieve your New Year’s resolutions for this year!