I get all fired up this time of year, but I just read a statistic that 44% of adult Americans make New Years Resolutions (original publication date 2011!) Hmmm.  Less than half.   So, odds are, if I write about resolutions, the information will resonate with less than half of you, and may actually irritate the others. In an informal poll of my household (ok, I asked my husband), my own research supports the 44% statistic, or close to half, as I set  them and my hubby does not.

So my challenge to you is not to Create Resolutions.  This will be the last time today I mention New Year and Resolutions.  Let’s just talk about Goals, Objectives and Outcomes. 

Objectives are small specific steps to reach a Goal.  Goals are larger, broader specific steps to achieve a desired Outcome.  Outcomes are the behavioral changes we want our goals to cause in us and in others.  In my time writing for a non-profit organization, I learned Outcomes are a more important and useful measurement of success than goals.  Outcomes get at the “Why” we should do something or work towards a certain goal. 

I am always a willing guinea pig, so let’s use my desired Outcome to “Stay Well and Get Strong” (it is).  My “Why” is to feel better, fit my clothes better, stay strong to live a long good life with my family, and others I don’t need to share.   

As examples, Specific Goals (broad statements) on the path to “Stay Well and Get Strong” are:

1. Take my Nutritional Supplement Every Day
2. Decrease my Caloric Intake
3. Increase my activity level
4. Add Strength Training to my exercise schedule
5. Get Sleep

Objectives, or smaller and more specific steps, to help me achieve these goals include:

1. Set up my nutritional supplement and vitamins for the week to make them more convenient to take (add a pill sorter to my grocery list).
2. Fill and refrigerate reusable water bottles to make it more convenient, and therefore more likely, that I will drink more water and decrease my caloric intake (done).
3. Rid fridge and cabinets of high calorie holiday food, and replace with healthier options (done).
4. Add one more fresh fruit or vegetable option to every meal, to increase nutrition and decrease calories.
5. Sign up for tennis lessons (done).
6. Set up a viewing screen in front of the treadmill, to encourage use on these cold January days (I despise walking inside, but I can’t not work out until Spring comes to Chicago!).
7. Add a weight lifting area, print information on proper form and exercises, and a grid for tracking time spent and number of reps.
8. Get back to my 10 pm bed time / 10:30 lights out habit, now that the holidays are over.

So, Imagine your Outcomes, Set your Goals and Determine your Objectives.  Ways to make them work:

1. Get all members involved in the planning if the goals and outcomes are for more than just you.
2. Write them down and hang them up!  Writing them down makes our Goals real, and hanging them up keeps them right in front of us as we make decisions throughout the day.
3. Be Realistic.  Unrealistic goals for me would be singing in a band (regrettably), playing for a woman’s basketball team, or quitting my real life and moving to Tibet.  As would losing 50 pounds or earning a million dollars this month.  Be realistic when imagining Outcomes and Goals.
4. Be specific in your Objectives. “Work Better”:  not specific.  “Get through all new email by 10 am”, “write a book chapter every week” or “make one cold sales call every day”, much more specific. 
5. Positive:  Make a positive statement with your Outcomes and Goal.  State what you will gain from making this behavioral change, not what you will lose.
6. Imagine Outcomes and Set Goals that are meaningful to you, that you are passionate about.  You will be more likely to commit to them.  Make sure they are For You, and not for someone else’s dream of how you need to change and what you need to do.

     These are ideas for any time of year, not just these first few days.  Imagine your Outcomes, Set your Goals and get cracking on those Objectives!  Happy New Year!