**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
To help me reach my weight loss goal this year I am going to try meal planning (including snacks and rewards!) and using one night each week to do the bulk of meal/snack prep for the coming week 🙂
I am making small but meaningful and achievable goals throughout the year las I accomplish one, I will either add to it or add a completely different goal. I am going to document this process daily whether it is journaling success or failure, I know I can look back and learn from both. Her is to a New and improved me in 2015!
I have made a promise to myself that this year I am getting healthy. I am just getting over the flu/pneumonia and I need to come out with a bang. I haven’t been eating bad foods only real foods healthy food and this has shown me how it has helped me heal. Imagine how I would feel if o just continued to change my habits. I don’t want this feeling to end. No aches or pains. Crazy what a good diet can do. I never hold myself accountable. I’ve had a lot of down time to think and reflect what I have done to lose this weight and opportunities I never took advantage of because I was scared. I’m done letting the insecurities dictate the rest of my life. I’m in charge! Jumps or leaps… It’s only forward from here. Getting this would really propel my confidence that I can do this because I have people that will cheer me on. Not laugh and say I knew you couldn’t do it. Thank you.
My goals for 2015 Healthwise are:
–stop negative talk. Someone told me once to pick my favorite picture of myself and paste it on my bathroom mirror. Anytime I feel like telling myself something negative, say it to the picture of myself as a child. She said it is impossible to do and redirects thoughts to more positive and uplifting ones.
–quit soda! I never drink diet because I hate the taste, but I want to quit all of it! Only drink water!
–Do something active everyday. Even if it is just taking the dog for a walk, I am setting aside at least 30 minutes a day to be active
–I would like to lose 40 lbs and get back to my pre-night shift worker weight!
Thanks Heidi and Chris for always reaching out to help others!
Good luck everyone!
I’ve already lost 35lbs. My plan is to continue my workouts at the gym and focus on eating whole foods. I want to eat things that make me feel good!
What a great idea the diet bet is. I suffer from depression and food addiction, but I keep going :o) If I had the money, I would definitely join the bet. Keep up the great work!
in 2015, my word for the year is restoration. I’m turning 40 in July and by that BIG 40… I’m working towards restoration of my health, fitness, relationships and most importantly… My faith! Physically I am working towards being 20 lbs lighter. I am working towards reaching 250 classes of Pure Barre by July and running a half marathon in March!
Working out was never my issue, the kitchen is. My 2105 goal is to prepare 80% of the food I consume. Taking it one day at a time. I Believe it is possible because I believe in me!
One of my goals is to kick my addiction to soda. I’m only 26 and am paranoid about getting ospeopoeosis and that’s not okay. 2015 is my year!!! I’m pumped and more importantly I’m ready! : )
I have 3 amazing children I want to be with for a long long time. I will be 40 in 6 months and really need to lose quite a bit of weight.