If you are like most folks, by this time of the year you are either discouraged about your lack of progress toward your goals or you have given up on them altogether. In either case, allow me to offer you two words: consistency and decision.

In graduate school, I was fortunate enough to be able to play racquetball just about every day. Racquetball is one of those games where you can play well, lose focus for just a second, and then play very poorly.

Consistency is the key

We had a saying back then that applies in the present: Consistency is the key. Consistently focusing on doing the necessary things to achieve your goals will win out every time.

If your goal is to get in better shape, then consistently exercising and eating right will get you there.

If your goal is to save more money, then spending less on junk and consistently putting money in the bank will get you there. You either consistently blow your money on junk or consistently save it.

So if consistency is the key, what is the key to consistency?

Decisions. Making the right decision, making the right choice over and over again over time equals consistency. The word decision comes from the word incision, which means to cut. So to genuinely decide to do something means to cut off any other possibility.

If you want to get into better shape, get the junk food out of the house, because if it’s there you will eat it. If you want to save money, have it taken out of your paycheck and sent to savings before you ever see it.

There’s one question to ask yourself often to keep you consistent and making the right decisions. What do you really want? Do you really want the short-term enjoyment of that candy bar or do you genuinely want the long-term enjoyment of being in better shape and saving money?

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So what the heck are life goals, you ask. You see, many of us have goals, and while that’s wonderful we have to make absolutely certain that they are in line with our life goals.

Life goals are basically just a fancy name for more long-term goals. Our larger dreams, the things that get us so excited we long for their achievement. Since our long term goals are where we ultimately want to end up, it’s rather important that our shorter-term goals, or those action steps that support our long-term achievements are working together.

Here’s an example:

If your dream is to become a graduate of your local college and go on to get your MBA, but your short term goals are not leading you to spend more time studying then you can just about bet you’re going to have some type of struggle between what you desire and actually achieve. Essentially you’re planning long term for one thing, yet taking steps in an all-together different direction.

A much more effective solution would be to work backwards where after outlining your longer term goals you start looking towards more immediate steps you can take that will lead to the overall outcome.

It’s my hope that you got one thing from what I said above, that life goals are not to be taken lightly. They should be totally in line with your values, the things that you personally believe to be important. When we are careful to align our long term plans with our natural abilities I believe that we can actually steer our lives on the course we want it to take.

Personally my life goal is to create opportunity for those around me. To positively impact those I am fortunate enough to come into contact with. After identifying my life goal I have a standard with which to measure my short-term goals.

For instance, if I have an idea or goal I’d like to work towards I look at it objectively to see that it fits into and will help me reach my long-term goals, if it doesn’t then the idea is discarded. I record the idea along with the reason I passed on it, and simply move forward with my daily routine.

You’ll put yourself at a distinct advantage when you make sure your short-term actions lead you towards your long-term objectives.

– Here’s to your success, Josh Hinds

Josh Hinds specializes in helping people set and achieve their goals and live the life of their dreams. For expert advice on goal setting visit http://GoalsSuccess.com now!

How do you know what’s the best use of your time right now?

Link your daily tasks to your purpose.

You’ll make better choices and see the value in seemingly insignificant or trivial tasks. It keeps you focused on doing what needs to be done to get what you say you want.

It’s one thing to say what you want, to choose projects that will get you what you want, and set goals that will achieve those projects. But, you still have to do the work. You still have to pay the price by just doing it.

Linking your purpose to what you do each day underlines the responsibility and the discipline you need to complete your projects.

Having an overall objective and doing what needs to be done gets priority. You can make your choices about what you are doing consciously, knowing that every little bit helps.

For example, one of your projects in support of your purpose of an independent self-sustaining life may be getting a newer, more reliable car.

Choosing to bring your lunch rather than spending eight dollars at the café every day is obviously the right choice. By doing the math, you quickly see you’ll save about $150 a month on lunch. Putting that money aside will get you your new car that much faster.

It’s the little things done consistently and persistently that make the huge difference in achieving our projects, whatever our projects are.

Even with exercise and fitness. New medical research has shown shorter periods of exercise done more often are more effective than longer periods of exercise done less frequently. Even if the longer exercise sessions add up to more overall time, they still aren’t as effective.

Build in momentum sustainers. If you’re like most people you start out a new project enthusiastically, and then lose track of it in the bustle of all your other obligations.

By building in appointments with people to check in with, and appointments with yourself for review, you force yourself to be accountable. You might want to set up weekly goals for yourself, or make an agreement to accomplish specific tasks by your next check in date.

Additional techniques for linking daily tasks and long term projects include:

* Remind yourself what to do to support your purpose. Put up reminder notes around your house to keep your purpose front and center.

* Figure out how long specific tasks take so you won’t skip out by telling yourself it takes too long, or you don’t have the energy.

At one point I decided I would get more serious about housework, especially doing the dishes. I had told myself it was too big a hassle to fiddle with before I went to bed. I was embarrassed to discover cleaning up the dishes actually took five to seven minutes.

* Use lost, or fiddle time, to punch a hole in a bigger project. I no longer leave dishes in the living room, at my desk or next to the bed. I take them into the kitchen when I am going, rather than waiting to make it a task to be done.

* Build in an artificial deadline and put yourself on a schedule. Play a game with yourself, and even reward yourself, for being a good kid when you’ve done one of those necessary but not fun little jobs.

* Give yourself credit for what you have done and the hassles and work it was to accomplish it. I live in a wonderful town. When I tell people where I live, their reaction is usually "You’re so lucky to get to live there." Luck had nothing to do with it. It’s part of a project I have in giving myself the life style I want.

Copyright © 2005 Pat Wiklund. All rights in all media reserved. This article may be reprinted so long as it is kept intact with the copyright and by-line.

Pat Wiklund is known as the One-Person Business Turnaround Specialist. She works with professional services business owners so they can make more money and get more personal satisfaction from their work. Start taking charge of your business and your life with her TakingCharge mini ecourse from her latest book, Taking Charge When You’re Not in Control by sending a blank email to tcnic@1PersonBusiness.com

Contact Pat at Pat@1PersonBusiness.com

Goals keep us motivated. But sometimes, people find it too hard to achieve their goals. Maybe because they have set long-term goals before setting short-term ones, or they did not plan their goals carefully.

Goal-setting strategies are important especially for those who want to achieve long-term goals. Here are five goal-setting techniques to help you realize them.

1. Start with short-term goals that will lead you to long-term ones.

Sometimes, people start with short-term goals unconsciously. Why unconsciously? Some of them may have considered the goals to be long-term at the time they planned them; and after achieving a goal, they realize that they are in fact, looking forward to a longer one. Some are contented with their short-term goals, but after a while will realize that they also need to attain long-term ones. Short-term goals seem to be our set off for longer ones. They will motivate the person to plan for longer goals, which will usually take some time before achieving them in full.

2. Make sure you really want the goal.

By this, you have to ask yourself: "Do I really want this goal? Will this goal give me a better life?" Answering these questions will give you more passion to achieve your goal. Some people recall their past to find out why and how they came up with such goal.

3. Speak up.

By this, it means you shouldn’t keep your goals to yourself only. Sharing your goals could help you get the support you may need from others. Some people are too shy to tell others about their goals for reasons like they are afraid they cannot achieve these in the end, or they lack the courage to speak up their minds. This is not a good habit because when the time comes that you really need their support, you will have a difficult time to get such support. You will then have to achieve your goals all by yourself. Also, sharing the fruits of your goals is uplifting to the mind and spirit.

4. Write down your goals.

This strategy is more advisable for those who have a long list of goals. After writing them, it is advisable to review them because this will encourage you to achieve them.

5. Stay on track and don’t give up.

Reviewing notes will help open your mind to see if you are on the right track. While on track, you may have to face challenges that might change your personality. A person who is overconfident might suddenly feel depressed after finding out that he is going the wrong way in achieving his goal. Thus this might lead to abandoning the goal. Never be discouraged. Facing obstacles is a test on how passionate one is to realize his goal.

Author: Mickaël Kerenterff. For more information, please visit my website at http://www.GoalRealizationSecretsRevealed.com where you can grab a free e-course about Goal Realization Secrets. You will discover How To Easily Achieve All Your Seemingly Unreachable Goals and Experience the True Happiness You’ve Always Longed For, No Matter How Disoriented You May Be Today!

Please don’t worry; this is not a new question for the SATs but a rather interesting correlation. The New Year is fast approaching (although no one wants to think about it) and soon you will sit down to take a hard look at yourself and to ask yourself some significant questions upon which you will decide on some New Year’s resolutions. Many will stick to your resolutions for a few weeks, some will manage to stick to your resolutions for a few months but the lesser will truly follow through and see their resolutions come to realities.

So what type of resolutions do people make? You all know the answer to that question since for years you have gone through the process New Years after New Years but still here is an example–from January 1st 2006 and on, you make the New Year resolution to stop procrastinating. That’s your resolution because you know you’re guilty of procrastinating and you need to get more accomplished this year. Good enough of a resolution or is it?

When making a New Year resolution did you ever consider and actually ask; what is honestly at the heart of your New Year’s resolutions? Why do you make them? What are you really looking for–is it change and improvement to your life? Is it new direction, objective, and motivation to achieve those goals that for months and years you have been thinking about but not taking any actions on? Is it to discover who you are and what makes you happy?

Let me illustrate. At the heart of why you want to stop procrastinating you find the question: what makes you procrastinate? At the heart of what makes you procrastinate you find the question: what is interfering and sabotaging your drive and desire to get things accomplished? At the heart of what is interfering and sabotaging your drive and desire to get things accomplished you find: the real issues. At the heart of the real issues are solutions, there you find: greater happiness, sense of self, and more success. Now, there is a true resolution and real motivation to stop procrastinating…one you will stick with for the rest of your life.

A New Year’s resolution is to life coaching in the sense that life coaching puts you in touch with what is really at the heart of who you are, what you want and why. Life coaching is about taking and making New Year’s resolutions on a monthly, weekly or even daily basis and following through on each one. Imagine where that could take your life?

The biggest advantage to the coaching process is that you have someone helping and assisting you each step of the way. The number one reason for not following through on “resolutions” is that no one is dedicating their time to supporting you, motivating you and holding you accountable. The Coaching process is uninterrupted time for you, in you and about you.

It’s doesn’t matter what you are trying to do, change, be, improve or accomplish you benefit and add value by taking on a Life Coach as your partner in your quest. Another added bonus is that you don’t have to wait until the New Year to do so, the happier, more satisfied, successful, and greater you is just a phone call away.

Ann Bernard is a Life and Transitional Coach and founder of Life’s Guiding Source. Coach Ann has been helping people make transitions, welcome challenges, build confidence, take big leaps and find true happiness through change. Find out more at http://www.coachingyourfuture.com.

Many of us start each New Year determined to accomplish new goals. Often, after a few weeks into the New Year we find our best-laid plans derailed with the challenges and time demands of daily life. As a result, many of us never actualize our well-intentioned goals. You don’t have to wait for new years to decide to take action on your most important goals. Here are five time-tested suggestions for achieving your goals now.

Resolution: "A course of action determined or decided on".

The Random House Dictionary

1. When we experience a strong desire for something coupled with the willingness to take action, we set the process of goal achievement in motion. Effective goals are specific, tangible, time limited statements of the results you want. Statements like "I want to be happier" or "I want to be healthier" are too vague to lead you to results. Does your goal meet the SMART test? Effective goals meet the following five criteria:

Specific: Does your goal clearly define what you want? Measurable: How will you know when your goal is achieved? Attainable: Is this goal possible for you to achieve given your characteristics, assets and limitations? Realistic: Does your goal make sense given your current circumstances? Time limited: What is the target date? Without an attached date a goal is a stated intention rather than a desired outcome. You can always change a target date. (Carter-Scott, 2000).

For example, an intention like "I want to be healthier" becomes "I will exercise for 30 minutes per day five times per week for the next six months.

2. Another obstacle to goal attainment is trying to work on to many goals at the same time. Unfortunately, this can dilute our ability to focus. It’s important to prioritize your goals. Select the most important resolution and begin to work on it. If you feel you have multiple important goals to work on, limit your self to a maximum of three to optimize your effectiveness. Once you have determined your goal(s), list all the possible things you can do to take action and make your goal come true. Find one-step that resonates with you. Do the first step you selected and then take the next step. If you work daily at something it won’t take long to break your goal down into bite size steps that allow you to accomplish a big goal be it writing a book or securing a new job.

3. Structure your environment in a way that optimizes your success. For example, if you are working on improving your health, structure your refrigerator in a way that it supports this goal by keeping nutritious, low fat food choices available. Set-up a walking date with a friend four times per week after work. Organize your support team by asking for help from people you know believe in you. Ask them for support on a daily and/or weekly basis. Reserve time to work on your goal by saying no to things that are not truly important to you. Then leverage this time to work on your goal by building it into your schedule.

4. Change rarely happens in a straight line. It’s often two steps forward and one step back. When setbacks occur, process your emotions, put the experience in perspective and then move on. Rather than beat yourself-up with a question like "What’s wrong with me? Ask, "What’s right with me?" "What is the next step I can take?" "What are my choices now?" Then move forward.

5. Celebrate Success! Reward yourself after the accomplishment of each step you take. Take the necessary steps to experience the fulfillment of your goals!

Carter-Scott, C. (2000). If Success is a Game, These are the Rules: Ten Rules for a Fulfilling Life. New York: Broadway Books.

Written by Suzanne Rudolph Ed.D., Licensed Psychologist and Certified Personal and Professional Life Coach. She can be reached at rudolphs@comcast.net or visit http://www.lifecoachingsolution.com for more information about coaching services.

As 2005 approaches, many of us are thinking about change. Many of us are setting goals, and making promises to ourselves and to those we love. We may vow to do everything different—better—next year. We set lofty expectations to lose weight, learn a 2nd or 3rd language, never yell at our kids again, or give up our vices completely. And as the calendar closes out one year in favor of another, the timing seems just perfect to make those changes. But are we really, really ready? Attempting to change before we have made a fully educated CHOICE to commit to the process may be our first (and biggest) New Year’s mistake.

Psychologists Prochaska, Norcross, and DiClemente, among others, have developed a theory about the process of change, and the process by which we can be effective at implementing long term change in our lives. This Transtheoretical Model involves a number of steps by which people have been professionally and successfully treated and taught to manage their problem behaviors through behavior modification. As you read, ask yourself where you are in the process of change, and what obstacles are standing in your way from reaching the next level, and ultimately success. The example I use is to illustrate is one of weight loss; however, virtually any goal you may have to improve your relationships, time management or organizational skills, or any other aspect, fits the model.

1. PRECONTEMPLATION. In this stage, a person is unaware or under-aware that he or she has a problem. There is no expressed desire to make any changes, and no real concern or immediacy for anything to be different. If asked, we might say that things are fine, and that if nothing is different a year from now, it would be okay. Others around us may think we have a problem, or may be concerned about us, but we don’t see their need for concern, or simply don’t care. We may be in a state commonly referred to as “denial” or may just be resigned to being this way forever.

2. CONTEMPLATION. In this stage, an individual has become aware that there may be a problem, and has begun considering doing something about it. An overweight person may notice that he or she is out of breath when walking a short flight of stairs, or notices that his or her clothes don’t fit the way they used to. A smoker realizes that his or her health may be in jeopardy, and is beginning to “wish” that things could be different. When in this stage we often talk about how we really should x, y or z. We should go to the gym. We should say no to chocolate super fudge brownies. We should eat more fruits and veggies. We should…we should….we should…but we don’t.

3. COMMITMENT. In this stage, we have actually accepted that we have a problem and ARE going to do something about it. We are motivated to change. It is no longer acceptable to stay the same. The thought of NOT changing is unbearable. We can’t stand being out of shape any more. We are sick of the way we feel about ourselves. We are sick of watching life instead of participating in it. We go beyond saying “I should” and begin saying “I will.” We often enter this stage and commit to change only when the alternative is no longer tolerable. We’ve become sick and tired of being sick and tired. It is in this stage that change—and progress—are born.

4. PREPARATION. So we’ve decided to change. Perhaps we’ve decided to lose weight, or be more active, or change our eating habits, or stop telling ourselves negative thoughts. So how do we go about doing that? We need a plan. We brainstorm. This is our “could” stage. We think of every possible alternative and resource. We could join a gym. We could hire a personal trainer. We could eat nothing but lean cuisines. We could go on a grapefruit diet. We could exercise an hour every day. They may be realistic, or downright crazy, but we’re brainstorming. We look at our options, and we choose the ones that will work for us. We prepare for battle. We buy the workout outfits with the matching headbands. We invest in expensive home gym equipment. We buy unproven supplements from professional looking models on TV. We rid our homes of dangerous temptations. We devise a plan, and are intent on following it through. We are ready.

5. ACTION. We’ve committed. We’ve prepared. We are physically, emotionally, and spiritually ready to embark on a journey by which we will improve our lives. And we follow our plan. The action stage is the “I am” stage. I am working out 3 days a week. I am following a sound nutrition plan. I am catching myself and the negative things I say to myself about food and my weight. I am proud of myself. I am doing. I am acting responsibly. I am changing and I feel it. This stage, when employed consistently, will result in the changes for which we have prepared and desired for so long. Is it easy? No. Is it always fun? No. Does it take a great deal of motivation, support, desire, and tenacity? Yes. Is it worth it? Yes. If you stick to it, will it happen? Yes. The key is to enjoy the doing as much as the results of doing. Take pride in the fact that you are behaving better. You deserve respect. You’re doing more than most. You’re way ahead of where you were in the game back when. The secret is to keep doing. It takes a week or less to form a bad habit; it takes at least 30 consistent abstinent days to break one. Give yourself time to form good habits that will last you long after you’ve reached your weight loss goal. Just keep doing.

6. MAINTENANCE. Whew! You’ve been behaving in ways that have resulted in changes, and avoided behaviors which have hurt you or others. You feel proud when you look in the mirror. You hold your head higher. You have more self confidence. You interact with others more positively. Things are good. However, the danger of this stage, after we’ve made some big changes, is that we slide into complacency. We’re no longer so uncomfortable that we MUST change, and we are at high risk for relapse into past unhealthy and ineffective behaviors. Research shows that people who are able to maintain healthy changes for a minimum of six months have a great chance of success. If we can maintain the positive behaviors that have helped us reach our goal, without focusing on the result, but the process—then we are on our way to lifelong changes. All those good habits that were hard for us at times—working out, watching what we eat, encouraging ourselves, getting support from others—have become part of our lifestyle. It’s just what we do, and the alternative is not an option.

When we have gotten to the point where we have implemented healthy lifestyle BEHAVIORS into our daily living, and continue to engage in those healthy behaviors regardless of the fact that we have reached a weight loss goal, it is THEN that we will have been truly successful at changing for life. When it becomes unthinkable to BEHAVE differently, then we will have reached the point where weight is no longer the focus of our goals, and will no longer be a source of low self-esteem. After all, we will be managing our lives in a way that demands respect from others, and it will show not only in the fitness of our bodies, but in the confidence and pride with which we greet the world. And THAT is where real success is measured.

Jana Beutler-Holland, M.Ed., is a therapist, life coach, and personal fitness trainer. She and her husband own SWAT Personal Training, a personal training company in Tucson, Arizona. Jana is owner of Life in Motion Coaching, providing life coaching, wellness, fitness, and weight loss coaching via phone to clients all over the world. For more information on coaching services with Life in Motion visit http://www.lifeinmotioncoaches.com

Usually towards the New Year, people start to set goals that they would like to achieve for that year. The feelings we have in relation to our goals are not aligned with how we think. So what has been found is that people put forth too much action before aligning them properly with their feelings and actual beliefs.

To become inspired by your goals, so you achieve them, here are some starting points.

1. Why are you setting this goal?

Many times, people set a specific goal too fast. We set them, not knowing why we set them or what we really want. You should feel a strong desire about your goal. If you don’t know what you really want, you will be wasting your time because you won’t be committed. You should feel like you want to do this, not that you have to. Such as saying I want to lose weight, not I have to lose weight. Even if it’s for health conscious reasons, that should be an even better reason to increase your motivation so you get healthy faster, not that you have to because the doctor says so.

2. Make your desire clear

You can have two kinds of goals, personal and professional. Determine what your goal(s) fall under. If your goals are made with a strong desire in mind, you may not complete them. You should feel excited by the possibility of achieving this goal and what the outcome will do for you.

3. SMART Model

S = Specific
M= Measurable
A= Action orientated
R= Realistic
T= Time based

Write down your specifications in detail and how you feel about each one.

4. Don’t make your goals impossible to achieve.

Don’t set a time limit to complete your goal because you may become pressured by time or give yourself too much time, which may cause you to slack. Let go of your judgments, as well as your attachment to the outcome such as looking the way you think you need to look.

Once you let go, you let go of yearning and waiting which frees up your time so you are not attached to a specific outcome but instead are letting the universe deliver.

Use your intuition to inspire you and take action. Taking action from a place of feeling good is effortless. Take in new ideas, opportunities, and assistance that you may have not considered before. You should feel that you are no longer having to do things, and instead wanting to do them or effortlessly achieving your goals.

If your goals aren’t met then,

Reframe it – maybe you set your goals to high or it wasn’t the right time to strive for them. Perhaps something came up that took your attention away from being able to achieve them. Don’t give up, just reframe your goals and achieve them!

For more information please visit http://www.singlemotherresources.com

Kelly Kennedy is the Communications Specialist for MindComet Corporation, a full service marketing agency for Fortune 500 companies and international conglomerates. Kelly specializes in public relations strategies focused on personal finance. Kelly has been author to hundreds of articles focusing on finance. She also acts as a contributing author for a wide variety of websites and newsletters. Kelly holds a Bachelors degree in Marketing from the University of Central Florida.

The following tips are my personal recipe for successful and lifetime personal wellness. These are the strategies I have employed for the last 25 years that have kept me motivated to continue to try to improve my overall wellness. For the record, wellness encompasses the following three key components: Fitness, Nutrition and Stress Management. These tips apply to all these categories and can be considered as my personal benchmark recommendations for success.

Battle vs. War

When we identify that changes in our wellness are necessary the tendency is to want to change every aspect of our lives and to do so instantly. We decide that starting January 1, you pick the year, our New Years resolution is going to include starting a daily 2-hour workout program, starting a 100% vegan nutrition program, and starting to meditate 4-hours a day. We set the clock for 4am and plan to get started by popping out of bed and hitting the gym for 6-hours, right after drinking 32 ounces of vitamin water, but not before we face East and bowing to Mecca! Cut to the real world and we see that alarm going off at 4:00am and our fist smashing it into the next life as we go back to sleep for another 3 hours. Oh well….there’s always next year!

Sound familiar? I know a lot of people who have had good intentions to get going, but they are ill prepared to make a shift of such drastic proportions. It’s like the beginning of a war and they want to win the war that day. Forget about it! We need to focus on a smaller piece of the war and win one battle at a time. Anything more than that can be potentially dangerous to our health and mental well being, and failure is virtually guaranteed. Starting slow and having a positive experience is far more likely to generate a lifelong wellness program. Win small battles and you will win the war!

Set Realistic Goals

A better plan is to take on small changes that make sense for you. For example, if you are looking to begin a wellness program for the first time, after you get some direction from your doctor on where it is medically safe to begin, you could start your fitness plan by beginning a walking program. You could change your eating habits by adding a fruit or vegetable to each meal rather than depriving yourself of the things you like. You could start a stress management program by sitting quietly for 10 minutes every morning and evening. The truth is, small, realistic changes are something you can do without shocking your system. Small changes are generally safe and they accomplish the goal of getting you started on a lifelong journey. Lifetime wellness should always be our goal. Remember, you did not get out of shape overnight. This was a decline that potentially has occurred over years or even decades. It takes time to make positive changes and change should be slow, realistic and steady if you want to be successful.

Make Excuses

That’s right…I want you to make excuses. Make excuses to workout, make excuses to eat better and make excuses to do something to manage your stress! I don’t care where your motivation comes from. The reasons to improve our wellness are infinite! We want to live longer, to play with our children or grand children, to enhance our survival, to look better, to manage our pain, to feel better, to improve the quality of our life, to improve our self-esteem and so on. It simply does not matter what our motivation is, we just have to find the things that matter to us and use those as daily reminders to strive toward our goal of complete wellness. Stop reading right now and make a list of the reasons that support you in stoking your motivation to work on your wellness. Post that list in a place where you will see it everyday.

Visualize Success

Before you go to bed each night spend 60 seconds seeing yourself exactly as you would like to be. See yourself as trim, fit, healthy, relaxed, happy and in perfect health. Tell yourself that when you wake up you will feel fantastic, refreshed and ready to face your day. When you rise that morning make your first thoughts “I feel refreshed, energized and ready for my day!” Sit on the edge of the bed, sit up straight and once again visualize yourself exactly as you want to be. These simply, positive affirmation and visualization techniques are phenomenally powerful. Don’t believe me; try it for 4 – 6 weeks. It works because the mind controls the body, but you have to prove it to yourself first. Don’t take my word for it, but do take my challenge. Anyone, and I mean anyone, can do this simple technique. I don’t care how busy you are, you can spare a few minutes each day for your own self-care!

Get Help

I mean this quite literally. It is very hard to stay on track without help and support. What type of help you decide to enlist is entirely up to you. You can hire a wellness professional to help guide you in every aspect of your personal development. You can make a contract with a friend to provide support for each other. You can have a competition with a group of friends or co-workers to see who can loose the most body fat. You can make a family resolution, list your goals and support each other in achieving those goals. How you go about setting up a support system is unique to your needs, but it is also a critical component to your success. Nothing works better than having someone to help or someone to help you.

Make a Contract

Write up a contract with three sections. These three sections should include fitness, nutrition and stress management. Under each section you will list REALISTIC goals and set a REASONABLE time to achieve those goals. Write this down, sign it, give a copy to a friend or partner so they can check up on your progress and have that person sign your contract to support you. Frame your contract and post it where you will see it every day. This is a real contract and as you will see in the next section, there should be rewards and consequences for sticking with the contract or for breaking it!

Reward Yourself

I very strongly believe that once you set a realistic goal for yourself, and you state those goals in a formal contract, you should also set two other components. Those components include consequences for failing to reach your goals and rewards for reaching your goals. Consequences do not need to be drastic, but they should serve as enough incentive to keep you motivated not to suffer them! Rewards should be something pleasant that you really want to do. No, you can’t go to your local food gorge and order the entire 7 layer chocolate decadence cake! A better choice might be buying some new cloths to fit your new trim body, or treating yourself to a massage or planning a vacation to a special location. Whatever you decide set these rewards and consequences as you go along your journey. Sometimes this added incentive is just the ticket to keep you striving toward lifetime improvement.

Believe in Yourself

Most of the people I see that continue to fail are, as a general rule, people who simply do not believe in themselves. Many people are only content to whine about their situation and they become so mired in this personal created reality that they feel powerless to change. This can be very difficult for some people. Life, people and events can be cruel and leave us scared and unsure of ourselves. Sometimes making positive changes, even small changes, can seem completely overwhelming. This is where believing in ourselves becomes critically important. You must accept the fact that it is OK to fail! Seriously, failure is simply a part of life. We have all heard about seeing glass half-empty or half full. How do you see your glass? We have a choice to fail backward or fail forward. We can acknowledge and accept that life is difficult, challenging and at times overwhelming and we can move forward from there. Believe in the indomitable will of your spirit. See yourself as successful, reaching your goals. Believe!

Find Your Thing

When it comes to wellness we are all significantly different. Find things that appeal to you. If you are starting a fitness program and you hate lifting weights, then start with a walking program, or swimming program. If you are going to improve your diet then add some extra fruit and vegetables to every meal and eat them first so you are not so hungry for the other foods that may not be as healthy. Get a book on different stress management techniques like “The Guide to Stress Management” by Dr. L. John Mason and pick a stress management strategy that looks good to you. Try different things and experiment until you find something that really appeals to you. Your thing is your thing and I really don’t care what it is, but until you find it you are not as likely to be successful in making long term, lifelong wellness a success.

Get Off Your Butt!

Ok, when you reach the end of this paragraph stop reading, get off your ass, and go do something to improve your wellness. For example, take a fitness brake. Go for a walk around your building at work, do some pushups or jog in place. I don’t care, just move! Take a nutrition brake and instead of powering down a muffin, scone or donut have a piece of fruit. Take a stress management brake and sit quietly for 10 minutes seeing yourself as happy, healthy and fit! Do it right now!!!!!

Rodger Ruge is a retired police officer, martial artist, and personal trainer. He recently had his first book published, The Warrior’s Mantra, Barricade Books, June 2005. Rodger’s business, Ready Force Inc., specializes in training and consulting in law enforcement weaponless defense and wellness. You can visit Rodger’s website at http://www.readyforce.net.

What do you want to achieve?

Before you actually set up, decide what you want to achieve with your business. If you are already in business, review where you are going – are you clear about this?

Why not take some time out to think about and write down your goals for your business?

Write it down

Research shows that only 3% of people write down their goals, and on average these people earn 10 times those who don’t have goals. Plus research shows that people with up to date written goals are as much as 3100% more successful than people who do not have up to date written goals.

And make sure your business goals don’t conflict with things you want to do personally. When you are thinking about your goals, think about and write down your personal goals too. And if you are a multi owner business you will obviously need to discuss your responses with your colleagues, and agree on a shared set of goals for the business.

SMART goals

Make sure that the goals you write are SMART. What does this mean? It stands for:

Specific
Measurable
Attainable
Relevant
Timed

Apply these five measures to each of your goals.

What does it mean to you in reality?

Once you have written down your goal as a SMART goal, think about what the effects would be if you didn’t achieve itl. What is the “pain” that you and those you love will experience if you don’t achieve your goal, ie ill health, poverty, unhappiness etc. (Why do this? Because recognising this pain is an enormous motivating force that will help you to work even harder to make sure you don’t fail!)

Then decide what you will gain when you succeed - ie wealth, health, happiness, a prosperous retirement etc. What will you see, hear and feel? And what else will your success allow you to achieve/do? And finally write down the key things you will need in order to achieve your goal. For example, it could be new resources, contacts, skills, actions etc.

Repeat this process using a new sheet for every single goal you would like to achieve.

Prioritise

Next try and prioritise the goals you have written. Lay out all of your goals in front of you and decide which are the most important to you, which are less important and which (if any) are, on reflection, not important after all.

For each goal that is still important work out how you will achieve it, break it down in to smaller steps to make it easier to manage.

Plan in timescales to do each step, write them into your diary or planner. That way you make reaching your goals part of your daily activities.

Look at your where your time goes

Its worth having a look at how you spend your time at the moment, and comparing this to the way you would like your life to happen. Then you can fit your goals into this as well.

To do this, look at the personal goals you set out and list out the broad areas of your life that are important to you eg family, friends, business, health, fitness, money etc Make a note of the percentage of your waking time that you would like to spend in each of these areas in an ideal world (make sure that the column adds up to 100%) Estimate approximately the percentage of your waking time you think you are actually spending in each area at the moment, - just a rough and ready approximation here, don’t waste time trying to get pinpoint accuracy… the aim is just to get a broad feel Then calculate the gap between the two Looking at the gaps does it suggest that you need to make changes in order to achieve your goals? If it does, what changes are you going to make?

Next steps

Think carefully about everything you have just done and thought about. What are the implications for what you are doing in your business and your life - and what you should be doing?

Transfer the things you should be doing to an action planner. Keep this somewhere where you won’t lose sight of it, so that you are reminded on a daily basis about what you want to achieve.

If you think it would help contact an advisor, mentor or coach to discuss what else you can do to achieve your goals. Sometimes it helps to go through the whole exercise with a third party, who can be more objective and help you to focus on the right things.

Review your action planner. Prioritise it. And start taking action!

And remember, however good your ideas and intentions are… they will come to absolutely nothing unless they are turned into action.

So focus on taking ACTION. And start taking it today.

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Julia McDaid is a business coach and author, specialising in helping business start ups. . For more information on these issues or on coaching for new business owners, see http://www.startupright.co.uk or enrol on Julia’s unique Start Up 101 ecourse, where you can go into each subject in a lot more depth.

Julia also publishes a free ezine ‘Secrets of the Successful Entrepreneur’ – to sign up just send an email to ezine@startupright.co.uk