New Year’s resolutions are great. It’s the time of year where we all set ourselves big targets whilst we’re full of positivity, determined to achieve our health and well-being goals. However, it’s quite common for these big plans to fizzle out relatively quickly.
The main problem is that the idea of a new year encourages us to push extra hard to achieve our goals in January and then we run out of steam, when this season is far more suited for rest and replenishment.
What can you do about this?
Rather than going full steam ahead with your 2020 goals for them just to fade out within a couple of months or even weeks, why not try and change your approach? We’ve been trying something called soft power planning.
Soft power planning involves setting your intentions way out in the future and then working backwards to the present. Sounds like an oxymoron? It’s actually quite a simple method. Here’s how you can do it.
Soft Power Planning
1.Grab yourself a cup of tea, find your favourite notebook and sit in a comfortable spot where you won’t be distracted for about twenty minutes. It might help to put on some music to inspire you.
2. Close your eyes and take in your surroundings for a few seconds. You can think about how the floor feels under your feet or how the chair beneath you supports you. This could also be a great time to do some deep breathing. Now start to imagine.
3. Take yourself 12 months into the future. What is the one thing you want to achieve that will have the greatest impact on your health and well-being? You can dream big here – this is not the time to hold back. How do you feel, what are you doing and who are you with? Scribble it all down into your notebook.
4. Next, bring yourself back to the 9-month mark and ask yourself “in order to have achieved the thing I dreamed of, what was I doing at the 9-month mark?”. Be specific and write it all down again, including how you’re feeling and where you are.
5. Repeat this process for the 6-month, 3-month and finally, the 1-month marks. Take your time to think about exactly what’s happening around you and be as detailed as you’d like.
6. Finally, you’ve brought yourself back to the present and the final question to ask yourself is “what small but significant step do I need to take today or this week in order to set myself on the path towards that amazing vision I have of my most happy, healthy self?”.
One of the best things about this process is that it allows you to dream without limitation, to see your goals fully realised without burning yourself out too quickly or feeling knocked down when you don’t achieve your goals as quickly as you’d like.
Through the reversal process, you can then put practical, achievable plans in place to create a road map that will take you towards your vision. There’ll be checkpoints along the way where you can review and refuel before you move on to the next important stage.
If this process intrigues you, why not give it a try? The new year will be round again before you know it. On January 1st 2021, you could be looking back at all you’ve achieved and asking yourself “Where will I go next year?”
If we can be of any assistance in helping you achieve your health and well-being goals, give us a call or email. We’d love to help