We often kick off the New Year with goals to “change our lives.” Whether we want to lose weight, exercise regularly, or organize our homes, we jump in and give it all we’ve got. By the time spring arrives, many of us have abandoned the effort for achieving our goals – however, as our name implies, we have hope! Obtaining your goals does not have to be an all-or-nothing prospect and you may just need a change of perspective relative to your goal setting. Making small changes weekly can impact your life without the risk of discouragement that drastic change carries which can lead to failure. Try some of these “baby steps” and start achieving your goals with lasting results.
Weight Loss
Try crowding out a few unhealthy nutrition choices with healthier options. Instead of drinking a soda with your dinner, drink water. If you tend to eat out often, commit to cooking more meals at home. To get more fruits and vegetables into your diet, add a serving to each meal or choose to replace any unhealthy snacks with a fruit or vegetable option.
Exercise
Start slowly. If you are not a regular exerciser, just 1 to 2 days of moderate exercise will bring results. Choose the stairs over an elevator, park your car further away from the entrance, get out in nature for a 10-minute walk. The important thing is to start moving more.
Organizing Your Home or Office
You don’t have to do everything in one weekend. Each week choose a room in your home to clean and organize. Then maintain that room while you tackle the next room the following weekend. Each day, set a timer for 10 minutes and tackle some housework. If that is all you can manage, then that is still awesome! But you may find that you keep going and accomplish more than you had planned.
Every 1 to 2 weeks, choose a few small goals to work on and go for it. Once you have made those small changes a part of your daily routine, choose another. Before long, you will have made significant strides in reaching your goals. Give it a try. You’ll be surprised how quickly small changes add up to big goals.
