**Update: Here are the winners of our 6 DietBet entries: Me: Christy Cloer (Facebook), @alishabowling (Instagram), and April Sherlock (Twitter). Chris: Chelsi Byrnes (Facebook), @joshmagill (Instagram), and Carrie Sagel Burns (Twitter). We replied to your posts with the info on how to claim your free entry, so go check them right now! 😉 You have 24 hours to reply. Congratulations!
Every New Year?s Eve, Chris and I gather up our friends and family for a little resolutions party. It is without a doubt one of my favorite days of the entire year. Together, we hang out, set off fireworks, and laugh about the crazy adventures over the last year. Right before the New Year hits, we each write out individual resolutions on paper lanterns and release them into the sky. There is something so powerful about declaring your resolutions out loud to those closest to you. These kinds of promises, as opposed to silent promises, give us an added layer of accountability that we all need…including me!!
2015 has absolutely flown by, and I really can’t believe it’s that time of year again when at least 45% of us make those New Year?s Resolutions to lose weight, or save money, or get out of debt, or go back to school, or cross off that bucket list item…and on and on. Why is it, then, that on December 31st?364 short days later?only 8% of resolution makers are successful? Why do we have a hard time achieving any goal, no matter when we begin? Why is it so hard to do what we know we need to do? What quenched that burning fire we felt on day 1 of this ?fresh start,? and how can we reignite it and be successful goal achievers? It might take some trial and error to find your fire, but go for it?you?re so worth it!
Here are my six solutions for reigniting, and then keeping your goal-achieving fire burning brightly?with some motivational quotes thrown in for some extra kindling: 😉
1. Have a heart-to-heart conversation with yourself and ask?and answer?the hard questions: Why do I want to achieve this goal? How will my life be better by achieving it? If this is a repeat goal, why did I fall (because we never fail!) the last time? What will I do differently this time?
Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. ~Unknown
The best goal has a deeper motivation?that burning fire you feel within: to get a better job, to be able to play with your kids without feeling like you?re going to die, to retire at a certain age, etc. And while a goal to fit into that pair of jeans might get you started, it?s probably not a long-term motivator. Find that ?burning fire? purpose and you?re good to go!
Purpose is the most powerful motivator in the world. ~Gandhi
2.? Prioritize:? If your calendar and to-do list don?t match up with your goal, you?ve got a problem.
You have to decide what your highest priorities are and have the courage…to say ?no? to other things. And the way to do that is by having a bigger ?YES? burning inside. ~ Stephen Covey
Yes, you need to take care of life and the people in your life, but if your to-do list is full of too many low-priority ?other? things, you?ve lost your bigger, burning YES! Carefully prioritize your life and make sure those YESs are front and center.
3.? Replace fear with courage: The fear of failure is a huge fear we all have to deal with when committing to a goal, and the hardest part of reaching that goal is often convincing ourselves we can change even though we?re afraid! One of the easiest ways to find the courage amongst your fears is to make and keep one small Promise to yourself. Success ignites even more courage!
Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than fear. The brave may not live forever, but the cautious do not live at all. ~Disney?s “The Princess Diaries”
4.? Celebrate every single success, no matter how small: Set up your own reward system?it works for kids, why wouldn?t it work for you?! Make your rewards something tangible, motivating, and goal-related, and remember that each tiny success makes that fire burn even hotter, so celebrate!
People who succeed have momentum. The more they succeed, the more they want to succeed, and the more they find a way to succeed. ~Tony Robbins
5.? Be realistic:
- Achieving this goal will definitely make your life better, but don?t make the mistake of thinking it will make life ?perfect.? If you do, you?re setting yourself up for a big fall.
- Be prepared to fall, and when you do, pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and confess, reassess, and recommit to your goal. Remember: Falling is not failing!
- Get comfortable with feeling uncomfortable. Feeling comfortable is definitely a fire extinguisher!
Life is not meant to be lived in your comfort zone. ~Laurel Day
6.? Some other ways to keep that fire burning:
- Work on one goal at a time and make sure it?s a SMART Goal.
- If you don?t know where to start, do some research, ask others, and become a budding expert. For a weight loss goal, check out our Carb Cycling program?it works!
- Just begin. Focus on one small thing you can do today to move closer to your goal. Get on that treadmill for just 5 minutes, deposit $5 in a savings account, or look over your resume. One small thing.
- Prepare for and take care of small bumps in the road before they become huge roadblocks to your success.
Guys, I?ve got an amazing way for you to get a great start on that 2016 transformation goal, and it starts January 4th. Chris and I are hosting another?DietBet game??Get Lean in 2016 with Heidi & Chris Powell??and we?d love to have you on our Get Lean Team! It?s simple: Bet $30, lose 4% of your body weight in 30 days, and split the pot (which is growing every day, BTW!). What an awesome way to invest in yourself in more ways than one. 😉 Who?s in? Get all the info?here! And to give you a jump start on your 2016 transformation goals, I’m giving away three entries to our DietBet game! Here’s how to enter:
- Leave a comment below and tell me about one of your New Year’s Resolutions. And to make it really real, tell me one promise you’re going to make to yourself to help you achieve this goal!
- Make sure you’re following me on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, and then like this post on any of my channels. You can even share it if you feel so inclined. 😉
- You have until midnight, Sunday, January 3rd, to enter, and one winner will be randomly chosen from Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, and announced here on Monday, January 4th.
And remember, finding your fire and keeping it burning brightly is all up to you?no one can do it for you. You got this! 🙂
Xoxo,
Heidi
1,283 Responses
I am going to eat more clean so I can train for a half marathon and run the WHOLE thing. Bettering my body with food to deal with allergies and sickness better! I am so excited to work towards my goals!
this year I’m going to finally deal with my dads death in a positive manner instead of finding my comfort in food. He died after a short battle with cancer two days before his 75th birthday. On 1-8-11 my life changed so much so I forgot about taking care of me. I take care of my kids first and find food my comfort. I’ve gained back 55 pounds of the 100 I had lost two years prior. My dad was so proud that I had lost the weight and he was my cheerleader to get healthy. He used to remind me weekly that I don’t need sodas, however when all the stress came up when he got the cancer diagnosis I drank a soda and it’s been downhill ever since. So this January 8th I’m going to finally honor my dad and give it all up like I did before. I’m going to finally listen to his funeral service, she’d many tears and then shed the sadness weight. I know I can do this and j know my dad will be my cheerleader in heaven watching down on me. I know I can still make him proud and make my kids proud too. I have to stick around to be here for them, and stop letting the hurt and sadness win. Thank you for always posting positive information and wellness tips.
For my 2015 my resolutions are: I want to lose 40pds I know that takes hard work, lots of motivation which that is why I love the Powell’s, and dedication. I know I can do it and I will do it, I know it takes time and I can’t do it over night. My other resolution is to save money and get caught up. Me and my husband just bought our first house a year ago and are wanting to get better with money. You see when we first started to look at buying a house that’s when we were doing really good at working out, eating right drinking water… do everything right. But when we started the process we got off track and o gained back my 30pds I had kept off for 3years. Well now we are settled and I really want what I had a yeare ago. We will do it all together. I have my family my health and all the wonderful people in my life to help me.
I am going to work on balance. I am an all or nothing person. I need to find a healthy balance when it comes to food and exercise.
I’m working on getting my whole family fit and would love to gift this to my husband! Together we will make this happen!
This year I am hoping to get back on track with my fitness goals. Last year I started and did my first 5K and 10K, and I lost 25lbs and not only lost my pregnancy weight gain but got below my prepregnancy weight. I lost track over the holidays though and even gained some back (5lbs). This year I am starting my goal off to lose the rest of the weight I planned on losing by starting the State of Slim diet, which is not only a diet but a lifestyle change. It includes the food and activity needs that I feel will help me lose the rest of the 20lbs I need to lose to get to my goal. Already have the start date and phases in my calendar. 🙂
My goals for 2015 to get into shape are to drink more water, cut soda out 100%. Actually use my gym membership. I need to get over the feeling that people are judging me at the gym. I have 7 months to get my boots in gear so I can participate in the Dirty Dash…it’s on my bucket list and it’s about time I stop letting my weight interfere with crossing things off that list!
For years I did not take care of myself. Now my body is suffering the consequences. This past year I have gotten a lot of bad news. So in 2015 I am choosing life over food. I have been working out and watching what I eat. This is not a diet I am on – it is my life plan. My goal is to get below a 30 BMI. This is very important for my life. I will take it one day at a time – drink my water, exercise,, eat right and seek out all the support I need for this journey. You and Chris are part of that support – thankyou!
I cant think of a better way to start the new year than to join with friends and family for this dietbet game. We are of competitive spirit, and want to support and motivate other loved ones to be healthy and happy and live active lives, so we can all be better mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, and overall good human beings! Cheers to you all!
My goal for 2015 is to lose weight and gain financial freedom, so I’ve set monthly goals to help myself get there! For January I want to lose 10 by making better eating choices and moving more. Financially, my goal is to make $500 this month through my home business while being a full time mommy to my three girls!