“Aim at a high mark and you will hit it. No, not the first time, nor the second, and maybe not the third. But keep on aiming and keep on shooting. Finally you’ll hit the bull’s-eye of success, for only practice will make you perfect.” Annie Oakley
What have you chosen for your target this year? What is the one thing you truly want to see change in your life, your relationships, your work, your service to others?
Sometimes what we say and what we do are two different things.
Instead of giving lip service to a bunch of New Year’s resolutions, why not choose one as your single intention? Fill in the blank: “I purpose to ________________________ as an intentional choice and act of my will.”
Notice a few things about an achievable intention:
- Your target is realistic, i.e. it is doable.
- There is a way to measure the results to see if you have met your goal.
- You set a specific time period for completion.
- Your effort will determine of the outcome. Since no one can (or should) control another person’s decisions, don’t count on convincing a friend, partner or child to buy into your intention.
Knowing these four qualifiers, expand your intention into a 2 sentence target complete with measurement and time limit.
These are a couple examples:
“I want to increase my savings so I have 3 months salary in the bank in case I lose my job. I will bank 10% of my weekly earnings for the next 36 weeks. As my reward for spending less, I will use anything I save over my target amount for a vacation next summer.”
“I want my family to eat supper together around the kitchen table again so we have quality time with each other on a regular basis. I will plan and prepare homemade meals for Weds and Sunday evenings for three months, then evaluate and revise my plan if necessary. ”
You can do it! Tell someone your goal so you are accountable. Take small steps consistently. Keep track of your results. Sometimes just writing down your progress (or lack of it) can help you get back on track.
Most importantly set a few intermediate mile stones – weekly or monthly checkpoints. Attach a reward to meeting those requirements. A reward that is too far away looks too small to be a motivator!
A resource I highly recommend for both planning and tracking purposes is a List PlanIt membership! No matter what your goal, you will find practical lists that help you think of details and possibilities you might not have considered. [For the examples above, lists are available for both meal planning and financial planning categories.]
List PlanIt memberships are available in either print or digital formats to suit your preference. Go to Giveaways and tell me the list category that would revolutionize your life for a chance to win a 2012 membership! The winner of this week’s contest will be announced on January 15th.
Good luck and be sure to let me know when your intended change comes to fruition!
Now that cold weather is upon us, I want to share a family recipe for quick and easy “feel better” chicken soup.
