Christmas is over and January has suddenly snuck up on us bringing in a new year. It
is an exciting time to look back on 2015 and all the things we wish we had done
better as we make resolutions and goals for 2016. Making goals is fun and easy, but
keeping them is a different story sometimes.
According to Statistic Brain, 45% of Americans make New Year’s resolutions, BUT
only 8% of Americans are successful in achieving their New Year’s resolutions! Life
gets in the way, we get distracted or there is just too much to do and by February
our newly established goals are already on the road to being forgotten.
So this year, lets make a goal to keep our goals! Here are some keys to success we
can follow to make sure we achieve our goals and become our best selves in 2016!
1. Get to know your goals
Don’t just say you want to eat healthier or read more books, understand why
you want to do those things. Know why your goals are important to you and
why you chose them. Have an explanation and a reason for choosing your
New Year’s resolutions so that you are more excited and prepared to achieve
2. Write your goals down
Our minds are a big place with lots of information constantly flying around. If
we leave our goals in there all by themselves, they can easily get lost. Write
them down in your journal, put them up on your mirror or your desk. Put
them somewhere you will always see them so they do not get lost after a
couple weeks.
3. Prepare for your goals
If your New Year’s resolution was to read more, then get the books you want
to read and put them on your bedside table, in your car, in your purse or
somewhere so they will be within reach when you remember to read. Put
yourself in a position to succeed by preparing yourself and giving yourself
the tools you need. It will make your goals that much easier for you to
accomplish.
4. Ask the Lord for help
No one knows us better than our Heavenly Father. And no one wants to see
us succeed more than our Heavenly Father. Proverbs 3:16 says “Commit thy
works unto the Lord, and thy thoughts shall be established.” Our Father in
Heaven is always there to help us be better. When we take our goals to Him
and ask for His help, He will answer us and help us.
In October General Conference 2015, Elder Larry R. Lawrence told the bible story of the rich young ruler. This young man asked the Savior “what lack I yet” and the Savior immediately answered him, telling him how he could improve. Harold B. Lee said “every one of us, if we would reach perfection, must at one time ask ourselves this question, ‘what lack I yet?’” Our goals are meant to make us better and help us on our journey to becoming more like Christ. And thankfully, we have been given a Savior that is always willing to show us the way and help us along the path. “If we are humble and teachable, He will take us by the hand and lead us home,” (Elder Larry R. Lawrence).
We all have incredible potential inside of us to do great things with our lives. Making and keeping goals is an important part of reaching that potential and becoming our best selves. So make a goal to keep your goals in 2016 and always remember what we are taught in Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.”
Comments