Friday, December 27, 2013

5 Ways to Find your Roar in 1-4

Christmas is over, and it's time to make those New Year's Resolutions. I know, I know. You're thinking, "What's the point?"  Resolutions never work. You feel guilty in January for making it in the first place so you start hitting at it, and by February, it fades into oblivion. Why do you think most workout joints turn into ghost towns in February?

Here's the reason. Permanent results require permanent changes. Unless we're committed to behaving differently, we can't really expect resolutions to have all that much effect on us. Resolutions require a little bit more than words of aspiration. They need a detailed plan of action which describes the behaviors that we will exhibit on our quest to achieve the desired outcome. 

Roar 

I always connect with motivational songs, and Katy Perry's song, "Roar", is a great motivator. The beat is catchy, and the lyrics are inspiring. The lyrics to the chorus represent exactly what every mindset needs to commit to a New Year's resolution. 

I got the eye of the tiger, a fighter, dancing through the fire. 
'Cause I am a champion and you're gonna hear me roar. 

Louder, louder than a lion. 
'Cause I am a champion and you're gonna hear me roar. 

#PutThatOnYourMotivationPlaylist

So How Does This Apply to Me?

If you're wondering how you can make that New Year's Resolution actually come to fruition, here's 5 ways to help you find your "Roar in 1-4". 

1.  Set a Specific and Attainable Goal
Define in specific and attainable terms the person that you would like to become in 2014.

  • What specifically do you want to be better at in your leadership, your health, your personal life or all 3? 
  • What will you be like when you reach this goal? 
  • How will you be different?  
If you don't have a vision of what you will be like when you reach your goal, you don't have much of chance of accomplishing the goal. 

2. Develop a Plan of Action. 
Define the specific behaviors and activities that you need to implement to accomplish your goal. If you want to be a better, you must commit to learning how to be a better. Reading, careful study and  learning from others are key action steps to making that should be included in your plan. 

3. Find a Coach or Accountability Partner
If you want to reach your goal, you need to find somebody that can hold you accountable. Find someone that will be honest with you and keep you on track. Ask them to help you stay focused on reaching that goal, and coach you when you start to struggle.

4.  Measure your Progress
Resolutions fail because people fail to measure change over time. Just like a scale measures your weight, all goals need to have some way to be measured. Whether it is quantitative data that can show you numerical progress or the qualitative data of feedback from peers and colleagues, determine the data that you will collect to gauge growth. 

5.  Recommit Every Day
Change is never easy. It challenges us to get out of our comfort zone and be something different from who we currently are. If you want to reach your goal, you have to  recommit to your resolution every day.  If you stick with it, chances are you will reach your goal. We all get weak and have moments where we want to stop.  Keeping the goal in the forefront helps us never give up. 

Hear Me Roar


Resolutions are very important part of the beginning of each new year. If you think about it, you really only have about 70 opportunities to make a New Year's Resolution stick. We forget that the purpose of a resolution is to test our resolve and to challenge us to be a better person, a better spouse, a better parent, or a better leader.  Sadly, many resolutions fade away due to the stress and the busyness of life. Resolutions fail because people say they don't have time when in actuality they fail to make the necessary time to invest in the change. In 2014, I challenge me and you to not make a half-hearted resolution. I challenge all of us to make time to find our "Roar in 1-4".


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