Can you believe that we are already half way through 2019? It has gone simultaneously very fast and at a snail’s pace. So much has happened, yet more still could have. That we are half way into 2019 is a big deal: you have even less time to work on those New Year’s Resolutions now! I’m sure you’ve been working on them, right? Let’s take a look at how to maintain your resolutions and stay on top in 2019, and have a look at how I am doing with mine!
Only 1 in 10 feel their resolutions are successful by the end of the year
That’s a crazy statistic! Only 1 in 10 of us, who actually make resolutions, will think themselves successful in accomplishing them. Looking back on my personal experience, I’m surprised it is even that high. I’m not sure I’ve ever been successful with my resolutions!
It’s not all bad news though, as apparently the mere act of setting resolutions is positive. Indeed, those that do set resolutions at the New Year are ten times more likely to actually change their behaviour compared to those that set no resolutions!
What that tells us is that even if you aren’t doing very well at the moment with your resolutions, you still doing better than those that didn’t set any. You should congratulate yourself for that, and hopefully, you can see small changes to your lifestyle brought about by what your resolutions and goals are even if you aren’t close to completing them yet.
Go over your resolutions and fine-tune them
It is always worth looking back over your resolutions and seeing if you were a bit outlandish with any of them. If so, perhaps dial it back a bit. There’s nothing wrong with changing a resolution slightly. It is better to achieve something than feel like you have failed.
The opposite is equally true. If you said you would read a book a month and you have been reading two a month, maybe it is worth upping the goal just as you would a daily step goal once it becomes too easy.
If you are certain you will not be able to complete a resolution by the year-end, or whatever date you had set for it, perhaps it is worth cutting your losses early. If you can make the resolution easier I would recommend that first and foremost. But if, for example, buying a new house this year just isn’t going to happen then you should accept this and move on. You can always replace it with a different, but connected, resolution, such as saving X amount of money for a deposit.
It might even be worth creating an entirely new resolution. People’s life’s change all the time and new priorities and wishes are always cropping up. Resolutions certainly don’t have to be refined to the start of a New Year. In order to have robust growth, we must always be looking to set new goals and resolutions to match our ambitions. If you’ve got something you want to try, need to sort out, or something else time sensitive, halfway through the year is a good a time as any to set a new resolution!
My progress
Tackling this all in the same order as my original post about my New Year’s resolutions, let’s start with my hobby goals!
I had three goals relating to Warhammer 40,000: firstly to have a fully painted set of terrain, secondly to finish painting my Tau army, and thirdly to sort out a gaming mat or board to play on. I am on my last piece of the terrain set which should be finished by mid-next week, commitment depending, so this will be completed soon. I have about 4 units left to paint for my Tau as well so hopefully, this will also be completed by year-end. I have picked up a game mat last month so that’s the first goal completed!
For my other hobby goals, I am having more mixed results. I’m not sure I’ve played the piano in months and that is something I wanted to do weekly. I keep my keyboard stored away to allow me more space but it has been detrimental to me actually using it. In the second half of this year, I want to really try to get it out at least weekly! Reading books is something it turns out I can do, and I have read 4 books so far this year – 6 if we include audiobooks, which we will. That means I have accomplished this resolution as well! Two down!
Hitting lifestyle goals, my first one was to meditate at least twice weekly. This goal has been a bit hit and miss, as sometimes I go weeks without doing any and other times I will do it daily for a period. I need to get more habitual in the practice. Walking to work twice to week is a similar story: I will sometimes walk every day for a week, and then get public transport the next week. I’ve taken to walking one way and getting a train the other recently, which is helping (and means I can use my railcard to get a discount in the evening!).
My third lifestyle goal was to get down to a 36” waist and weigh around 15 stone. This one hasn’t gone well and I’m sitting happily where I was at the onset of the year. It is still more than possible for me to meet this goal by the year’s end, however, and I intend to do so! In the past few weeks, I’ve been more “on it” and a couple of months ago I joined a new gym I am regularly going to.
Finally, financial goals. I went on our holiday to Lisbon in April which I saved for in advance so that is completed. I wanted to have saved £350 for a 2020 holiday by the end of the year, and I am well on the way to that sum although I did use some for a recently Nottingham visit.
For my emergency fund, I wanted to put away at least £70 a month and so far I am meeting that easily. I may consider raising it further by the end of the year. I wanted to build up a small sum of £400 in general savings as well to put towards 2020 goals. That amount is coming along nicely too.
The last goal was to find a full-time and well-paid job. I knew it would be the hardest of the year and it is yet to be achieved. I haven’t put the effort into finding one that I would have perhaps liked. Hopefully, by the end of the year, I will have found the perfect job for me!
In summary…
I feel like I am doing pretty well with my 2019 goals so far. If I managed to complete the last one, for a full-time job, I think I would have been successful. It would certainly also be nice to drop a couple of stone to a 36” waist size as well! Both of these are more than achievable in the remaining time.
All said I don’t think there are any resolutions that I need to drop for being too unrealistic. Everything I haven’t achieved can still be achieved with a certain degree of comfort which is a nice place to be in at the half-way mark.
I don’t feel the need for any new goals to these at this time either. I believe I have enough to be working with for the time being. I am already starting to think about what I might be about to achieve in 2020 though, especially thanks to the 2019 goals if completed.
How are your goals going in 2019? Picked any resolutions you are regretting now or need to rework? Let me know in the comments below or on social!
[…] to be careful and measured in my approach. I wanted to make sure I could be flexible with my goals (like I talk about here). This way I could easily add to or adapt my goals, especially if some take on new life and split […]