New year's resolutions: It's not too late to salvage them -- Career Center Blog

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February 4, 2011

New year's resolutions: It's not too late to salvage them

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By Michelle Goodman
NWjobs

Now that we're five weeks into the new year, I have to ask: how are those resolutions going?

[Photo by graymalkn]

If your best-laid plans to work out before work, get more rest, or investigate making a career change already have been foiled, not to worry. You still have 47 weeks left until 2012.

Although scientists and psychologists may tell us we're hard-wired to fail miserably at our new year's resolutions, chances are you know at least one person who got back into shape, beat off workaholism with a stick, or made the leap from worn-out wage slave to invigorated career changer last year.

Some suggestions that can help as you work toward adopting new habits and meeting new goals in your health, happiness, and career well-being in 2011:

Forget resolutions -- set goals instead. As Psychology Today points out, "Losing weight is not a specific goal. Losing 10 pounds in 90 days [is]." The bigger the goal, the more bite-sized steps you'll need to break it into. If you want to change jobs by 2012, for example, dedicate February to researching your options, March to reworking your resume and online presence, April to stepping up your networking, and so on.

Change one habit at a time. As Lifehacker writes, "It's completely unrealistic to make January the month where you start running every day, cook meals at home, pack your lunches for work, learn to play an instrument, and get up an hour early to work on that book idea you've had floating around in your head." Work on one habit you'd like to change or adopt each month, however, and your chances of success increase exponentially. Use February, for example, to master spending less time on Facebook. Once you have that down, devote March to packing your daily lunch, walking the dog each morning before work, or whatever small habit is next on your list of personal fixes.

Track -- and celebrate -- your progress. Seeing how far you've come -- and patting yourself on the back along the way -- is an important part of striving toward tangible, realistic goals and adopting new and improved habits. To up the accountability ante, enlist a friend to take up running, give up sweets, or stop checking work emails after hours with you. There's nothing like a supportive buddy egging you on (or breezing right past you) to help you change your spots.

How about you? If you've begun making changes in your work/life balance or career this year, how are you doing so far? What tricks or tools have you used to stay on track?

Michelle Goodman is the author of "My So-Called Freelance Life" and "The Anti 9-to-5 Guide." E-mail Michelle at mgoodman@nwjobs.com