About two weeks ago, we started a New Year which is a time that so many people are keen to changing their habits, that is, abandoning old ones and building new ones. They want to build the habit of waking up early, eating a healthy meal, exercising their body, stop procrastination and so on.
Photo by Breakingpic from PEXELS
I came across a post on social media where some fans were teasing a popular music artist in Nigeria that was spotted in the gym with a caption "New year, New me", or thereabouts. Some of the fans teased him that this was the same way he started last year but after a while he went back to his normal routine.
The major issue with setting a target for the year is that most people do not get rid of their existing habits that could pose a threat to achieving their new set goals. You can hit the gym five times a week and you may not be fit because of the fact that you consume so much junks and unhealthy foods after all the hours spent in the gym. In the same vein, the essence of waking up early will be defeated if you spend the whole time playing video games, watching movies or scrolling through Instagram. Therefore, you may have to replace all the bad habits in your life with productive ones if you want to achieve all your set goals.
It is frustrating when you realize that all the loads of goals you set for the year in your to-do lists was not achieved. This is the result most people get when they look back to reflect on how far they have gone. But, did you set achievable goals or you just set high expectations that may not be met? Oftentimes, at the end of the year, most people are fed up with the way they spent the year especially if they achieved little or nothing, therefore they are determined to start the New Year on the front foot so as to make it a better one than the last. So, they set high expectations which may not be achieved and the cycle repeats itself.
Setting high expectations on a daily basis that keep increasing instead of decreasing is a cause for concern. The best way to work with a to-do list is to arrange them in order of importance (priority) and set deadlines as well. You must be able to identify the tasks that are important, relevant and urgent rather than just choosing what you want to do at will. The more you execute the important ones, the more you will have ample time to focus on other less important ones and gradually you will be making progress. You must be sure that the items you have on your to-do list are important to achieving your goals and not just a distraction - a mistake that so many people make.
Whatever goals you have set for yourself in this New Year can be achieved if you set your priorities right and get rid of all distractions that are camouflaging like goals. This could be achieved by getting rid of old habits, even though it's not easy, but it is essential to your breakthrough. It's going to take a whole lot - courage, discipline, persistence, determination and passion. Remember not to overwhelm yourself with huge and unachievable to-do list. Set targets that are workable and achieveble.