Don’t Fall for That Resolution Trap!

Image Source: www.forbes.com

Yes, you read that headline right. Another year is here upon us and there will be people all around you talking about their New Year resolutions, flaunting them like gold medals only to be disappointed a few weeks or months later when they fail to keep up with their resolutions. 

Statistics worldwide have shown that only a small percentage of people are able to keep their resolutions, while most of them start faltering and then feeling miserable. One of the best proofs of that is in the increase in the number of gym memberships at the start of the year and then the actual number of people really coming to the gym from the third month onwards. 

Resolutions are inherently flawed as they are set on the premise that you cannot break them and the minute they are broken, people tend to think that they cannot be fixed or mended resulting in disappointment with oneself, waiting for yet another year with another set of resolutions to conquer. 

I stopped keeping resolutions many years back when I realized about this flaw. I believe that a ‘Theme’ based approach for the year is a more powerful way of achieving something because there is no concept of breaking it. You keep doing things and moving forward with a theme-based approach and every incremental gain is another step closer to your goal. 

Let me explain by sharing with you all the Theme that I have chosen for myself for 2019. My theme for this year is ‘Value and Growth’. So, everything that I do should help me in delivering Value or Growth. 

Now it is important to elaborate further on what I want to do to stay true to this theme: 

1. Increase my own value intellectually, financially and emotionally: As you can see, through this single statement, I can push my boundaries on my knowledge, my reading, my relationships and my investments. 

2. Give value to people through knowledge, content and charity: It is not only about the value that I seek for myself but the value that I give out to others and there are various ways to do it. I can give my professional knowledge to my juniors and people I know or work with, I can share content on social media and digital platforms to known and unknown people which they find valuable, and I can give value back to society through financial support or any other kind of support to people who need it and do not have the means. 

3. Growth for self, for others and for the organisation that I work for: I can grow significantly and also be the catalyst of growth for others – people and companies by following points 1 and 2 consistently throughout the year. 

Now as you can see, everything that I do or achieve will only help me in staying true to my theme and by the end of the year, I will only feel nice about the distance I have travelled rather than feeling miserable about a resolution that I broke. 

So, what will your theme for the year going to be? 

2016: The Year of Extensions

So the dates on the calendar has changed, another year of hope, optimism and aspiration has dawned on us, the resolution test has been cleared by some and failed by many. We are 24 days into the year of 2016 and it is only apt that I once again talk about the ‘E Model’ that I have been writing about since the last few years with a new perspective to this model every year. 

If some of you are wondering what am I talking about, fret not my friend, as here are the links to all the perspectives that I have given over the years:

· 2015: This is How I am Avoiding Resolutions:

http://fugleman.blogspot.in/2015/01/2015-let-us-continue-with-e-model.html

· 2014: A Year where no Resolutions shall be Broken:

http://fugleman.blogspot.in/2014/01/2014-year-where-no-resolutions-shall-be.html

· 2013: No Resolutions. Just Follow the Es:

http://fugleman.blogspot.in/2013/01/2013-no-resolutions-just-follow-es.html

· 2012: A Year of Four Es:

http://fugleman.blogspot.in/2012/01/2012-year-of-four-es.html

This year, I did not want to come up with another set of multiple words within the model, because as they say ‘Why fix when something is not broken’. The E Model is working absolutely fine for me and it allows me to become better as a ‘Collector of Experiences’, which is how I like to define myself. 

So then, the question that comes to mind is that what will be different or how will I enhance this opportunity of being a Collector of Experiences? For this, I want to declare 2016 as The Year of Extensions for myself. You could also use this model if it works for you. 

What this means is that I will be stretching myself. No, no, not stretching myself physically to increase my height (even though I would love to do that if that was possible). This stretching is all about coming out of my comfort zone in various aspects and extending the standard. 

Let me try and explain this with concrete examples:

1. So when it comes to running, I have so far been in the range of 5 – 6 km regularly, but this year, I will be stretching myself and extending what I accomplish. 

2. In the last few years, my reading of books has come down significantly. Once again, I want to use this year to stretch and extend the number of books that I read. 

3. This model of extension will also be used on travel, exploration and other aspects of life.

4. And of course, what this also means that the earlier E Model will continue to be extended further.

Coming out of your comfort zone is not an easy task. It begins with a mindset and an attitude. It means, sometimes shaking off lethargy, laziness, that moment that tells you to press the snooze button, those moments of self-doubt, that urge to spend a few minutes more with your mobile and much more. 

As I begin this journey of extensions which should be exciting, I urge you to also join me in this journey and see if it works for you. By the end of 2016, all of us will be proud with the distance that we would have covered. 

The irony is that this blog is coming up in the month of February in a year that I am declaring as the ‘Year of Extensions’. So the time has already come to step out of the comfort zone, because magic only happens when you step out of the comfort zone!

2014: A Year where no Resolutions shall be broken

Happy New Year Readers.

As I hit the road called '2014', I can see 2013 in the rear view mirror going further into the opposite direction. Very soon, it won't be visible but it shall be remembered as the road I traveled on. 

This is the time of the year when people will try to make resolutions and try to live up to those resolutions for a short while before letting go and waiting for another year to give it another attempt.

I realized the futility of resolutions a few years back and was constantly pondering over what I should be doing to do the things I want to do without the fear or the guilt of breaking my resolutions. That’s when I wrote my blog at the start of 2013 called 2013: No Resolutions. Just Follow the Es. (http://fugleman.blogspot.in/2013/01/2013-no-resolutions-just-follow-es.html)

This approach was very helpful and allowed me to go ahead and do so many things without bothering about breaking resolutions. In the year 2014, I would like to continue with the same approach and the same model called the ‘E Model’ but with a different set of Es as it is a dynamic model that keeps evolving with every passing year. 

So what is this ‘E Model’ and why will it ensure that I do not break any resolution? The simple reason for that is because this model allows you and encourages you to do more and achieve more rather than restrain yourself.

Without further explanations, let me list down my ‘E Model’ for 2014:

1. Experience – Life is all about experiences and I like to call myself a Collector of Experiences. To me, an experience is a vast word that comprises of many things. Travelling and exploring new places is an experience as much as going to a new restaurant is. Trying a new adventure sport is as much an experience as attempting to learn a new language is. Reading a new genre is as much an experience as writing a novel is. I am sure that you have got the gist of what an experience can really mean. Experience is nothing less than an ocean that has been formed by small and big moments, which have turned into memories, to create an experience. For me, that ocean still needs lots and lots of such moments which I shall be collecting throughout the year. 

2. Earn – Collecting experiences is not an easy thing. It costs. Hence it is critical that I earn more than before through better performance, smart financial investing and other possible avenues. But earning financially is not the only thing that I am interested in for 2014. I am keen to earn the respect of colleagues and peers by the work that I do. It is important that I earn the trust of the consumers as a marketer by doing better and sharper marketing. Last but not the least, it is extremely important that I earn good Karma by my behavior and deeds and take a small step in being a better human being than what I was in 2013. 

3. Exercise – Every sportsman will tell you that ‘Health is Wealth’ and it is even true literally in their cases. But the reality is that only if you are healthy can you experience more out of life and earn what you intend to earn. So I will use 2014 as a year to exercise more than before and move to a healthier body and a healthier mind.

4. Exchange – In the times of social media and messaging platforms like Whatsapp, while the friends list has grown tremendously but most of the exchange of expressions and emotions take place only through status messages and emoticons. 2014 shall be the year where I make an attempt to change that. No, I have no intention of cutting down on the time that I spend on these platforms but what I surely intend to do is to catch up and meet friends and family in person and exchange thoughts, conversations and emotions face-to-face and in person. I would also like to use 2014 as a year to meet new people, form new relationships and expand on my bonds with people. 

5. Entertain – This one is about the attempt to escape reality and the current environment for a few hours every now and then to see the movies/TV Series/Music Videos that exist out there as well as the ones that would come out in 2014. 

6. Enjoy – While I may attempt to list down all the things that I want to do in 2014 and also achieve some of them, the truth is that I do not have control beyond a certain extent to what lies ahead. There would be ups and downs, achievements and misses and it is a part of the deal. Instead of mulling over those that I can’t control, my attempt for 2014 would be to enjoy life and its big and small pleasures, knowing well that I am trying and taking an approach that lets me grow and emerge a better individual with more knowledge than before and hopefully a broader horizon to view things. 

I hope that this model makes 2014 a great year so that I can look back at the end of the year and say that it was an eventful year with lots of excitement that I lived with great exuberance!