Five Steps to Keeping Your New Year's Resolution

The dawn of a new year sends many of us scrambling to make New Year's resolutions. Unfortunately the majority of the resolutions go - well - unresolved. Blanket resolutions never seemed to work for me but I did find a strategy that did. I broke my "New Year's resolutions" up into bite size chunks that were more manageable and easier to do. There are five easy steps to make your life more manageable and organized.

My biggest problem, and it may be yours too, was that I wanted to be able to do everything perfectly. I wanted the cleanest house while still working part-time. I wanted everything organized; all the shopping and laundry done, the bills paid, and then still have time left over for some fun. I finally had to face reality: I wanted all of this but had absolutely no way to do it all.

Step One: The Right Organizational Equipment

To be organized you need the right equipment. Buy or print out a weekly planner that is just for you and no one else. You are not going to keep track of the kids' schedules or the hot lunch menu on this calendar. You are going to keep track of your schedule.

The next items you need are five colored pens or pencils. You are going to color code your life. You will be able to look at your day or week in advance and know immediately how to plan and what you want to get done. I will get back to the color coding a little later

Step Two: Set Goals

I set daily goals and weekly goals. These goals are realistic and attainable. For instance, instead of saying "I want to lose 20 lbs. this year" I wrote down at the top of week one, "I want to lose 2 lbs. this week". All of a sudden 2 lbs. seems very manageable and not as overwhelming as "If I eat this slice of chocolate cake then the whole month of dieting is a waste".

I also set goals by the day. Writing this article is the perfect 'daily goal'. I knew I wanted to do it and I put it on my schedule for Tuesday. This is also the perfect way to keep from forgetting important deadlines. I knew I had to do it and if I put it down in writing then that serves as a reminder as well.

Step Three: Goal Tracking

There is no point of setting goals unless you're willing to keep track of your accomplishments. For me, it's as simple as checking off each task on my planner. Once it is off my list then I can move on.

Some goal tracking takes a little more than just checking off a task. Let's go back to wanting lose 2 lbs. for the week. I weighed myself every day and wrote it down in order to keep track of how I was doing. This way I could adjust my eating and exercise habits according to how I was doing in order to achieve success at the end of the week.

Step Four: Daily Tasks

This is the most difficult aspect when I am trying to organize my life and accomplish everything I want to. Some tasks seem to overwhelm me. Take for instance the first week in January, I know I need to put away all the Christmas decorations but I also still need to make time for laundry, cooking, and everyday cleaning. In the meantime, over the holidays, our bedroom became a dumping ground for gifts and miscellaneous items that didn't have a home.

The solution is simple: carve out a specific amount of time to work on one thing. I set aside tasks in one hour increments. I write down that Monday morning I'm going to spend one hour cleaning my bedroom. Monday afternoon I'm going to spend one hour putting away Christmas ornaments. When I know I'm only going to spend one hour then I'm more motivated to get started on a task then if I think I'm going to be spending the next two days straight doing nothing else.

By scheduling your tasks this way you also make time for your other daily activities. I can throw in a load of laundry, clean for an hour, then change wash loads again so the laundry doesn't pile up while I spend time doing the extra projects.

One task you must always schedule is a time for yourself. You do not have to carve out a complete hour but try to take at least 15 minutes to start that novel that's been sitting on your bookshelf, or to have a cup of coffee in peace and quiet, or carve out some time to start that scrapbooking project you've been putting off for a few years. If you schedule little snippets of time for yourself then you will be happier tackling the other projects.

Step Five: Color Coding

Okay, you have your calendar, you've set some goals and tasks, and now all you need is to write it all down. Writing it down will help you stay focused and be accountable to yourself because it's more permanent then if you just make a mental note.

Here's my coding system but you can easily develop your own. I use blue to indicate places I need to go such as the grocery store or the dry cleaner. I use purple for tasks around the house. I find that red stands out and draws my attention so I use it for my daily and weekly goals. I use green for goal tracking. I use pink for my personal time.

I accomplish more every day and feel a lot better about it when I use this method. It helps me stay focused and keeps track of my accomplishments. Not everything is perfect but it is much closer than it ever was. Chores and tasks don't pile up as big as they used to and I still have plenty of time for fun.