Break out the champagne and get ready to celebrate 2021. It is the time of the year when New Year’s resolutions are made and vision boards are created to set goals for the new year.
As 2020 gratefully comes to a close, setting intentions for 2021 can feel refreshing and help create a clear path of success through the new year. However, sticking to resolutions can prove to be hard. Corynn McDade, Certified Life Coach and founder of Get Your Life, LLC, suggests breaking goals down to smaller tasks to make them more realistic.
“By all means, you should aim high with your resolutions, but don’t be afraid to break them into smaller goals along the way,” McDade says. “It is impossible to go from 0 to 100. No matter what, there are still numbers in between the two.”
With common New Year’s resolutions centered around weight loss and financial freedom, quarantine and the pandemic may play a role in setting different goals for self and family. With increased time indoors, some resolutions may include ways to take advantage of the extra time at home.
“The most common goals usually revolve around self-improvement; people want to eat better or cleaner foods, create or improve budgeting, learn a new skill, increase productivity at work or at home, different things like those,” McDade says. “I think we will find that this year, many goals will involve how people spend their free time and their time with family and friends.”
Vision boards, typically created from magazine cutouts, are a good way to keep track of goals for the new year. A visual representation of a resolution list, vision boards help to see ideas and plans in real time.
“Vision boards should really include the things and ideas that are most important to you as an individual,” McDade explains. “You want to think of what motivates you, and what you want to see, or keep in your life. What is your focus? What are your goals?”
The life coach also suggests keeping vision boards in plain sight. Hanging vision boards on a wall in the home or placing it in the bedroom all help to increase the time spent seeing the board. Vision boards can even be stored digitally.
“The vision board should be in a place that makes the most sense for you. Where are you most likely to see it, and associate it positively with your goals? With so many people working from home, putting your vision board on a wall or other area you can see from your working space is a great idea,” McDade explains. “But don’t limit yourself. Just like we attend virtual meetings and gatherings, your vision board can absolutely go virtual as a computer or phone background.”
In an effort to stay on pace, conducting check-ins can help to assess status and completion of each resolution. Also, having a trusted partner can assist in staying on track.
“Schedule check-ins with yourself throughout the year to monitor your progress and assess what may be getting in the way. If you are someone that needs a little nudge from time to time, find yourself an accountability partner or even a life coach, to help you stay on track,” McDade suggests.
While sometimes resolutions fall by the wayside as the year moves on, staying consistent while working towards those 2021 goals can be a game changer. Though some tasks may be left incomplete, celebrating accomplished tasks will help to add motivation.
“There’s almost nothing that is a complete failure. Consider the small wins and congratulate yourself for the things you have likely accomplished despite not completing the resolution,” McDade shares. “You can absolutely learn and grow from whatever has happened. Don’t give up on yourself.”
If resolutions seem to become overwhelming, reassessing the time and resolution will allow for some flexibility in the plan.
“Really sit down with yourself, and analyze what has to happen, for you to accomplish your goal or achieve your resolution,” McDade says. “If it is not feasible within the year for some reason, adjust the resolution, or adjust the time frame.”
Closing out a year filled with uncertainty while welcoming a year of new possibilities, creating a vision board and writing resolutions can help set the tone for this new year. No matter how big or small, let those 2021 goals help shift you into the new year.