Cool article here … "Forget About Setting Goals. Focus on This Instead" – http://jamesclear.com/goals-systems
… about (for purposes of this brief discussion), resolutions. To wit, don't set a goal, set a process / system. Don't say "I'm going to lose 20 lbs." Say, "I'm going to track all my meals in a calorie tracker."
What's the difference? The process is something you can actually do, immediately, and get the reward of accomplishment. It can have faster effects — it might take me several months (hah!) to lose 20 lbs., but if I start noting each week, "Hey, I did what I said I was going to do," I'm an immediate winner. Better yet, losing 10 lbs. is a success from the process, not a falling short of the goal.
Yes, you do have to be sure that your process is going to lead toward a goal you want. But you were going to have to do that to reach the goal anyway, right? The difference is focusing on fulfilling the process, not attaining that distant brass ring.
So, let me think about some processes that will help me achieve goals I want achieve, rather than just think about those goals.
Yoikth and away!
[Edited to give it Daffy Duck's pronunciation.]
"Yerrks … nd … awauuuuh …"
That's pretty much what I'm doing. My resolution is to start tracking my time in the hopes that I'll be able to manage it better.
+Brittany Constable "If it can't be measured, it can't be improved." — Ye Olde Book of Hackneyed Management Proverbes
So I've already followed through on my process to make sure I get a game day scheduled each month. Which is to actually put a game day on the calendar each month..