There's something special about New Year and the prospect of a blank page to start afresh and to achieve new things. Whether you're vowing to get fit or finally launch that business idea, January is the perfect time to go about achieving it.
So here are seven Tips to Achieve Your Goals in 2015...
1. Have just one goal. I've blogged about being a scanner a few times so I know what it's like to have so many ideas whirling around your head that you want to accomplish. But whilst it's great to never be short of ideas it can also be a major distraction. So rather than spreading your focus too thinly, just have one goal so you can put your heart, soul and energy in to making that one thing a roaring success.
2. Create a new habit. It takes the average person around 66 days before a new behaviour becomes a habit. Goals are only achieved by habits so if your goal is to build a brilliant blog then get in to the habit of blogging often. Maybe you want to run a marathon? So get out and start running daily. Whatever it is, you need to do it often and be consistent.
3. Stop procrastinating. When it comes New Year we all make resolutions but what's the point in setting out goals if you're not taking any action. Taking action doesn't have to be big, bold, grand gestures but small things like; sending THAT email, doing some internet research or writing up your to do list. All the things you deem as small will add up to help you achieve your goal.
4. Keep it simple. I heard a great thing on Radio 4 the other morning, they were talking about fashion and how some of the most famous designers in the world tend to wear the same style and colour clothing on a daily basis because it keeps their life simple. Taking some time to simplify certain aspects of your life will make a huge difference on how you live. When we have too much going on in our lives it causes overwhelm and it makes us ineffective. Keeping things simple keeps us in check and can help with success.
Think about what you can make simple, it could be your wardrobe, your food, your email system - regardless of what it is, if you can simplify it - do so.
5. Be happy. If you're happy then positive energy will surround you. YES that sounds a bit woo-woo but happy people accomplish more - it's a fact. Check out Gretchen Rubin's 10 Ways to Be Happier.
6. Schedule in some YOU time. We live in an era of "BUSY" but you know what? It really doesn't hurt to stick the brakes on and slow down a bit. Of course when you've a million things to do you're not going to be able to drop everything but scheduling in a bit of time for yourself where you can just take a bath, read, paint your nails, enjoy a glass of wine in peace - whatever you like to do - is actually good for your productivity levels. When you feel rested and well looked after then you're going to experience clarity and happiness.
7. Focus. This kind of loops in to the having one goal and simplifying life. It's SO easy to get caught up in the unimportant details of life and to have our plans derailed because of distractions. Things such as email, Twitter, Facebook, text messages - they are all distractions that will cause you to lose focus.
If you want to achieve your goals this year then you need to learn how to focus. Start by identifying your goal, then every day, focus yourself on those things. Each morning (or the night before), make a list of the three most important things that you want to accomplish that day. Then just get started on the first one straight away before you get distracted by email or twitter. I find that shutting everything down that doesn't help with a certain task (including those pesky notifications, because I don't know about you but if something pops up to say I've got a message - I just can't ignore). When you're done then you can take a break and lose yourself in Facebook, Twitter and crazy cat videos.
What are you hoping to achieve in 2015?