How exciting! The beginning of a brand new year! If you’re like most people you have a lot of expectation for this year. You just know that this is going to be the year things turn around in a good way for you. Things are going to be so much better this year. You’re going to take control of your time, your finances, your relationships and your health. You’re going to have more fun and you’re going to be less stressed. So do you have a plan? Have you made your New Year’s Resolutions? Great!

No, wait!

Maybe that’s not so great.

Reality Check:

Do you know that only 8% of people are successful at achieving their New Year’s resolutions?

Yep, only 8%.

Where’s the hope, joy or fulfillment in that?

Why even bother?

Is it really worth the effort?

Well, yes it is. If you do it right. If you start at the beginning.

And that’s where most people go wrong. They don’t start in the right place.

You see making a resolution is the easy part. That’s why so many people do it.

Deciding what you want to do is fun. It releases feel good hormones.

It’s exciting to think of all the possibilities and it fills you with hope and enthusiasm. Right?

The tough part is figuring out how to do what ever it is you decide you want to do.

That’s where most people go wrong. They make a list of great expectations, but they drop the ball in the planning stage, and flounder in the execution stage.

By February it’s over for many people. They give up. They let go of their dreams for a magnificent year. They just quit.

The 8% Club

So what can you do to increase your odds of getting into that 8% club?

You need to set yourself up for success from the start.

You must identify and then address the obstacles.

Think about this…

The top categories for New Year’s resolutions are health/wellness, money, relationships, time management/productivity, giving to others, and self-improvement.

But just looking at that list can be exhausting. They’re all worthy and appropriate things to strive for. But they all take energy, focus and time.

Here’s where we become aware of the obstacles. Here’s where the reality sets in.

Do you have enough time to fulfill all of your current obligations and tasks, let alone more time to add something new to your already overfull schedule?

Do you have enough energy to do what you’re already supposed to be doing, not to mention add more things to the to-do list?

And how do you focus on other people and greater accomplishment when you’re so fatigued and stretched so thin you struggle to focus on the basics of daily life?

Seriously, when was the last time you shaved your legs or actually got 8 hours of sleep in one night?

Why We Fail

The main reason most people fail at achieving New Year’s resolutions is they don’t prepare. They don’t set themselves up for success from the start. They think if they just keep pushing… get stronger, be more efficient, work harder… set better goals… eventually they will get where they want to be.

But they haven’t prepared. They get tired. They lose momentum. They get distracted by other must-do’s. Enthusiasm wanes because of overwhelm, too much to do, time crunches, discouragement, stress, brain fog… burnout.

When you’re stressed-out, burned-out and overwhelmed you stop caring about lofty goals you made at the beginning of the year, no matter how exciting they may have felt when you made them.

So how do you properly prepare for success?

Would you ever consider going on a trip without first putting gas in your car, making sure the tires have air and checking that the brakes are working properly?

If you did it would probably be a rather short and dangerous trip.

At the end of the day do you put your phone on the charger so it will be ready and charged for the morning? If you expect it to work you do.

And you wouldn’t consider entering a marathon without planning, training, and preparing.

Yet every day we expect peak performance from our bodies and minds without giving the first thought to properly maintaining them and adequately preparing them for that peak performance.

Are you recharging before setting out on your daily journey? Or are you expecting to keep going without renewing your body and mind? Are you expecting to give what you don’t have?

Are you, like most people, expecting the impossible?

If you’re planning to get anywhere you have to prepare. Period. If you’re seriously expecting to achieve your goals and resolutions, you have to start in the right place.

How Do You Prepare

So how do you prepare? Where do you start?

The absolute, number one, first thing you must do, is to make yourself and your needs a top priority. You have got to take care of yourself before anyone or anything else. You have to decide that you and your needs matter. First!

Pause. Take a breath.

I know what you’re most likely thinking. It’s the same thing I thought when I heard those words.

You’re probably bristling. You’re irritated because I don’t understand. Your life is different than mine. I get it. You simply don’t have time for you right now.

You may have even sarcastically said something like, “Yeah, right. That will never happen.” And you may have already created a dozen reasons why that’s a ridiculous thought right now.

Are you feeling a little angry, frustrated, or perhaps a bit hopeless that you will ever have time for you?

Well, I’m going to tell you something. If you don’t make time for you, you will burn out. Your stores of energy and your ability to give to others will continue to decrease. Your health will start to fail and you will become a burden to those you love. Not a blessing, a burden. It’s that simple.

When you fail to respect your needs you teach others that they don’t need to respect your needs either.

And when other’s fail to recognize or honor your needs, a sense of frustration and resentment sets in. You feel over worked, under valued and overwhelmed. You may become angry or behave like a martyr. Eventually you feel hopeless and unhappy. And one day you realize you’ve become the person you never wanted to be.

Here’s the truth, if you don’t decide to take care of yourself and make your needs a priority, you’re playing with fire and you will get burned. The day will come when your body will simply say, “No more”.

Look around you. Burnout and stress are at epidemic proportions. And as a society we are paying a very high price.

But here’s good news!

When you reduce stress you make better choices.

Start in the Right Place

When you choose to make yourself and your needs important, you show others how to treat you.

And you set an example for those you love to take better care of themselves.

When you make you a priority and practice regular self-care, everything changes.

You reduce stress.

When you reduce stress you make better choices.

Your sleep becomes more restful, you eat better, you exercise, your health improves and you enjoy life. You feel in control, and you have more energy. You make better use of your time and your focus improves. Your attitude is more positive and you are better able to bless the lives of those you love.

And… your ability to reach your goals and aspirations increases exponentially.

So, as you make your list of New Year’s resolutions, make self-care your top priority for this year and every year going forward.

Fill yourself up with energy, enthusiasm, joy and self-confidence so you can go farther and faster than you ever imagined.

It may feel impossible today, but trust me, there is a way. A simple way.

This is the year I will help you take a stand for you.

Decide to make you a priority this year and see your dreams and aspirations come to life like never before.

Make this your year to Indulge, Ignite and Inspire.

Here’s to making this your best year ever!

Here’s to finding your Calm… from Within.