Specialist human optimisation coach, Sam Adams advised people to ask themselves: “What would realistically move my life forward this year?” The expert elaborated: “A simple way to decide [what] to focus [on] is a life wheel approach, looking at key areas like work, health, relationships, finances and energy. Then asking: which area, if improved even slightly, would have the biggest positive knock-on effect?”
Coming up with one “specific” aim that is “grounded in real life” is more likely to stick. This is because “too many goals often leads to paralysis, not progress”, Sam cautioned. “Most people do better with one main focus, supported by one or two secondary goals at most.”
And do not rely on motivation to push you towards your goal as the feeling “comes and goes”. Instead, Sam recommended habit stacking where you “attach a new habit to something you already do”.
This anchoring technique also works best when you focus on how you want to feel in yourself. Building on this sentiment is highly experienced life coach, Lorin Krenn, who emphasised the importance of how you perceive yourself.
Lorin elaborated: “Research in psychology shows that when goals are aligned with how people see themselves, they are far more likely to sustain action over time.
“We commonly believe that identity follows behaviour, meaning that if I change my behaviour, my identity changes. But it is the other way around. When we change how we see ourselves, our behaviour adapts accordingly.”
In agreement with Sam, Lorin added: “Contrary to popular belief, achieving New Year’s goals has nothing to do with willpower, determination, or a fancy vision board.
“All of these can be helpful, but they are superficial compared to shifting how we see ourselves and what we believe ourselves to be worthy of, in short, shifting identity.
“Once you understand this and do the deeper work of seeing yourself in a different way, genuinely believing you are worthy of the achievements you seek through goal setting, the rest becomes infinitely easier.
“At that point, you can choose a proven framework and actually stick with it, because emotionally you are deeply invested.”
