How to Succeed With Your Business Resolutions
Succeed with your business resolutions this year by setting standards that stick. You're not alone if you’re tired of starting strong in January only to feel overwhelmed and off-track by February. Research shows that most people abandon their resolutions within just seven days. Why? Decision fatigue, unclear goals, and a lack of practical systems often sabotage the best intentions. But what if this next year could be different? By redefining your approach and focusing on small, consistent changes, you can turn your New Year's resolutions into lasting habits that drive real results in your business growth.
Why Do Resolutions Fail?
Looking back to your previous New Year's business resolutions, how many of them did you set realistic goals. Often, small business owners will use the start of a new year to set business goals that may not have a simple plan that sets them up in the long run for success.
Why can it be so easy to quit? We get down on ourselves and throw up our hands in defeat because sometimes going after our dreams is hard work. I'm sure I'm not alone when I say running small businesses takes up so much energy. It is easy to put ourselves on an island and forget that we need support.
Giving up on business goals and New Year's resolutions is a struggle that many people have, don't feel like you're the only one. In fact, studies show that most people give up on their resolutions after just seven days. Seven days! Why is that?
The thought of how will I reach this goal gets in the way, and after a few short days, we stop trying.
When the hard work starts and the excitement has passed, our minds begin the negative chatter. If you’ve not been successful with your small business resolutions in the past, well, you’re not alone.
New goals open up new opportunities for us to change. If we do not have a strong enough reason for the change, it will be difficult to want to keep after it when overwhelmed and decision fatigue sets in.
The Solution – Set a New Standard for Your Life
Want to succeed with your business resolutions? Start by making it a new standard for your life. But what is a new standard? Well, standard means It’s just normal for you.
What will your new standard be? Do you want to become a person who gets up early and incorporates in a mindful morning practice?
Maybe you want financial stability in your business endeavors. Do you want a peek inside my upcoming year goal setting? I'll put a link to my free resource, which is a Quarterly Planner.
Each new quarter is a fresh start to set goals. This was cemented in my brain after reading The 12 Week Year: Get More Done in 12 Weeks than Others Do in 12 Months by Brian Moran. He says, “We mistakenly believe that there is a lot of time left in the year, and we act accordingly. We lack a sense of urgency, not realizing that every week is important, every day is important, every moment is important. Ultimately, effective execution happens daily and weekly!”
What can you do to make that standard happen? What guidelines can you make to set yourself up for success? What guidelines will you follow to be successful?
Making lasting change takes commitment, accountability, and maybe post-it notes around the house to remind you of your commitment and new standards. AND more importantly, on those post-it notes around your home, why was this resolution important to you when you set it at the end of the year?
The Role of Your Future Self
If you’ve been around me for any length of time, you’ll hear me talk about my future self and how I want to feel. This has become my gage. It wasn’t always in the past, but it gave me a different perspective when I began to look at decision-making through the lens of my future self.
This is my personal experience; I’m not a fake it until you make it kind of person. I know integrity is the best way to achieve my goals and commitments. This is where the future self comes into play; when making decisions in my business and life, as much as possible, I look at them as if my future self would thank me for this decision or will she be disappointed. Will she think it necessary to move towards my end goal and my commitment to myself, or did the decision or action set me back?
Small Shifts Lead to Big Results
Have you read the book Atomic Habits? The book is full of amazing points from James Clear. To make the change, you need to do it with a small 1% change every day.
In our instant gratification minds, we want everything in less time. This causes us to try to change who we are overnight. All from the feeling of excitement of new beginnings, who we will become once we succeed with our resolution.
We need to look at the new standard we set for ourselves and create sustainable practices. If you want to get more sleep. Go to bed 5 minutes earlier.
If the goal is a business success as rising entrepreneurs, get clear on how you help your potential clients.
Circling back to Atomic Habits, if you’ve not read the book, ask Perplexity to give you a summary and the high points, here is the summary that I received.
Ask yourself, “What is one thing specifically I can do today that will move me in the right direction?” This one thing needs to feel like it can be done. Do that until it’s routine, you know your new normal, and change something else.
Big commitments and changes are made one little step at a time. Clear also says to Focus on
Systems Over Goals; you know I love this advice. Set up business operations with systems to support your new direction if you want achievable goals.
Here is a quick video to go along with this post. https://youtu.be/r68s8swwM2M
Do we need a new year to set new standards for ourselves? I don’t think so. Every day is the perfect time to set a new standard for yourself. Every day is a good day to believe that you can. If we do not have a belief in ourselves, who does?
We have to want to make the shift more than anything. We have to want it for ourselves, or it will not stick. We must know why we want to change and why it is important to us. Why we are creating a different today. If we are doing it for someone else, it won’t work. We have to want it more. We have to see ourselves changing. Holding ourselves accountable for the positive impact we are willing to create. Do it for you.
Little Side Note: Want to succeed with your resolutions? Create a win jar. Every single time you stick to your commitment, give yourself a win. Write down your win on scrap paper, colored paper, or whatever paper makes you smile – and collect them. When you fall off track, read your wins, read your why. Know you can do it for you.
How to Succeed With Clear Goals
Here are the key points to succeed in setting clear, achievable goals.
- Give yourself grace on the hard days.
- One bad day does not equal failure; it provides valuable insights into areas to develop new skills and work through the setbacks.
- A new standard will become your new normal.
- Look through the lens of your future self when making decisions.
- One small change daily will gain you more confidence in your new standard way of life.
- What is one thing, not twenty, that will help keep you moving through change?
- Create a win jar and celebrate every single success when you feel like giving up.
- Every day is a good day to start a new standard for yourself.
Time To Wrap This Up: Succeed With Your Business Resolutions
It does not matter if you refer to them as New Year resolutions or smart goals; both are most successful when you take action on a regular basis. When you put together a list of top reasons you think making this personal life change is a good idea. When you take a closer look at why you have not been able to succeed with your resolutions in previous years from a place of curiosity instead of judgment, that is a great way to help history not repeat itself. I hope that you find this valuable. Thank you for spending time with me. I appreciate you, and I hope you make it a wonderful week.
