Resolutions vs. Goals

During the first few days of January, many people across the globe participate in the age-old tradition of writing a New Year’s Resolution.  The custom of making a promise to do something differently to improve one’s life (mind, body, & soul) in the coming year has been going on since ancient times. 

Writing a New Year’s Resolution is not the same thing as coming up with a goal for the New Year. Goals require hope and futuristic thinking, while resolutions require reflection, awareness, and a call for change to achieve a more positive future.

The reflection process involves serious thought or consideration to what has gone well during the previous year versus what hasn’t gone so well.  The opportunity generates awareness of both positive and negative behaviors.  Since behavior modification for self-improvement is the goal, a New Year’s Resolution usually centers on the negative behavior in order to launch a call for change. 

Negative behaviors stand in the way of personal excellence.  Making a New Year’s Resolution can be a positive way to ditch bad behaviors and replace them with good ones. The idea is that by looking at the past, we can better understand the present and make a future plan for a better life.

Research indicates that people who make a New Year’s Resolution are 10 times more likely to change their behavior than those who never commit.  That’s a good reason to participate in writing a New Year’s Resolution this year.  So, I’ll leave you with this question:  What’s your New Year’s Resolution?