Many people have the ritual of making personal balances each time a new year ends and along with it, of establishing new goals for the time that begins. There are also those who suggest the importance of decreeing our wishes so that they are fulfilled in the new calendar cycle. But for what and why define new goals? Is it really any use?
In ancient times the annual calendar began on March 1, until Julius Caesar established that January 1 was a day dedicated to the god Juno, a Roman deity of beginnings and new beginnings. It was with the Gregorian calendar that this date was established as the beginning of each year, and from there that the celebration that we have today extends.
There are many rites that have been incorporated (and others are being forgotten) at this time. Perhaps one of the most widespread is related to establishing the goals and wishes that we want to fulfill each time a new year begins, trying to make them come true and we can achieve what we want within ourselves.
However, many times when we want to do this projection exercise we do not really know how to start or how to do it, and here I want to share some ideas that may help you.
First of all, it is important to keep in mind that it is not enough to decree something for this to happen. Many people spread the idea that it is only necessary to decree for the universe to fulfill your wishes. However, they forget something fundamental and I am referring to the law of cause and effect. For this reason, it becomes crucial not only to establish clear goals that we can establish on our horizon, but also to generate the causes for the effects that we are looking for, that is, to make sure that these results occur, through our decisions and constant behaviors.
A second important point is related to what is called the “axis of fluidity” and that it is a way for our goals to mobilize us more, motivate us and become “better goals”. The axis of fluidity states that every goal or objective must be in a balance between its level of challenge and the level of realism.
Many times we set very challenging goals, on Monday or this year, I will change my whole life, all my habits, etc. It becomes so challenging that it finally paralyzes us and that makes us unable to really move forward. That we give up before our time. It is very common that we want to achieve a gigantic amount of things in the next 12 months, and we forget how much we can achieve of ourselves if we set goals for 5 or 10 years.
On the other hand, realism is also important, because if our goals are so challenging that they stop being realistic, we give up before we start. Both dimensions impact not only on the viability of what we want, but also on the motivation we have to be able to achieve our goals. Therefore, seek that balance, a goal that is challenging and realistic at the same time.
Finally, we can also incorporate a principle that has been studied in various research on achievement, habits, and personal performance. It’s the small changes that generate the big results.
Although it seems very evident to us that big changes generate big results, the evidence shows the opposite. It is the small changes sustained over time that generate the achievement of great goals. If you want to change your habits, improve your health, enhance your relationships, increase your income or make your personal project grow, then you must identify a small change that impacts those results, modify it and sustain it daily. Once you have adopted it, then it will be a good time to incorporate another small sustained change.
This new year, like every new day, is a tremendous opportunity that you have at hand to make things go better, so that life has that taste that you really yearn for inside, and although not everything depends on you, a lot does. It does, as long as you put commitment, dedication and persistence, any goal can be approached until you have it in your hands. The next step is up to you.