The first few days of January signify new beginnings and new aspirations. Hopefully many of us will have come back to work well-rested and relaxed. Now is the time when we can finally come up for air and focus on how we will approach the year ahead. Motivation and enthusiasm are high and New Year’s resolutions are often front of mind. Research tells us that less than half of us will achieve them which is a bit depressing. We would like for these numbers to be a little higher, so as a team of consultants who champion delivering change without drama, we got our heads together to share tips and tricks to help you navigate reaching your 2022 goals, as well as some of our own resolutions if you’re stuck for inspiration!
@Louisa shares that it’s key to plan in advance: without a plan in place, it can be hard to stick to intentions, especially on days where you’re tired or busy. One of Louisa’s resolutions is to set a better morning routine and stick to it, as a good start to the day makes such a difference to her full day. She is planning to get out a walk, have a nice breakfast and have some time to relax before work.
For @Lesley, it’s important to think of the year in two-week chunks – a nod to the Agile way of working we love so much at @AAB Consulting! A year is too long to think about what you have to do but two weeks is right in front of you and feels much more manageable and achievable. A resolution Lesley will be working towards fortnightly in 2022 is to read (or listen) to more books, inspired by our queen bookworm, Rachel.
@Rachel’s tip for keeping on track with resolutions (and her secret for how she managed to read one hundred books in 2021!) is to focus on achieving the small wins. By setting a manageable target (20 books), you’re then able to move the goalposts as soon as you’re close to meeting your main objective. For her resolution, Rachel is looking to tackle the books that have been on her ‘to be read’ list for months or years, as well as transitioning from “trying to survive 2021”, to “thriving in 2022”, the year in which she will cook more, engage in activities like yoga and rock climbing, and perhaps even running another long-distance race.
@Mark’s trick for navigating New Year’s resolutions is to hold yourself accountable through making goals specific, saying them out loud, and making them public – doing all of this is a sign of commitment to something tangible as you are promising to others rather than just yourself. For 2022, Mark will be focussing on growth through striving to spend at least 60% of his time on the business, not in it.
We hope you’ll find these pieces of advice helpful for the year to come, and if you’re struggling to keep up with your goals, please remember it’s been a tough two years so don’t be too hard on yourself!
