A lot of us every New Year after 2 cans of Lager to many make New Year resolutions of all kinds. We are going to climb Kilimanjaro barefoot, give up smoking after we finished the 400 packs we got in Lanzarote, walk the dog 8 days a week, never get angry anymore at politicians, get fit watching Davina McCall fitness DVD’s, support our local sports team instead of watching reruns of Leinster’s Heineken Cup win on Sky Sports 7 and so on.
Inevitably by the 5th of January you have blisters from walking the kitchen floor barefoot, got another 100 packs for New Year of your neighbour who came back from Gran Canaria, realise there is only 5 days in the week you want to walk that dog, get hit by another 5% levy and spit at the politician on your telly, eat 10 packs of crisps and drink 2 more cans of lager watching Davina do it for you and order in ESPN cause they have the Premiership rights for the 5pm matches on Saturday.
How does this happen? What can you do for this not to happen? Here’s my 10 tips for sticking to that New Year resolution and becoming the envy of begrudgers everywhere! 
1- Write it down in detail. This makes it real and gets it registered into your subconscious. Put it in your diary on page 1, write it on a notepad and stick it on the fridge. Make sure it is somewhere you go very regularly so you constantly remind yourself of it. This helps you staying motivated.
2- Believe you can do it. If your goal is realistic and you can visualise yourself achieving it, then you can do it. Make a clear mental picture of you achieving it. Seeing yourself succeed puts you in the right frame of mind.
3- Make a list of all the ways you will benefit from sticking to your New Year resolution. The more ways you can find, the more motivation you will receive from them.
4- Set a timeframe and write it beside the goal. The date by which you will have achieved what you set out to do. Again you are making it real both visibly and in your subconscious.
5- Think about all the difficulties you may encounter on your way to achieving your New Year resolution. These difficulties may come from inside you (such as willpower, lack of a certain skill etc…) or may come from external influences (such as uncooperative family members, time spent at work etc…). By identifying them you can already start looking at a way around these before they occur.
6- Check what information you lack right now to be able to start your journey to success and take steps to get this information ASAP.
7- Make a list of people you need help from; whether they are friends, relatives or professionals. By asking for their help, you validate them. Ask yourself what you can do for them so they will gladly help you.
8- Use all of the above information and make a detailed plan. Be precise, thorough and specific. Write down step by step how you will succeed. Brake down the resolution into manageable steps and plan them 1 by 1.
9- Celebrate every completion of one of the steps. Pat yourself on the back, give yourself a treat. Congratulate yourself. It keeps the motivation meter at 120%!!!
10- Never give up! You are always closer to achieving than you think you are. So NEVER give up. While change is always good, nobody said the transition period is a bed of roses. There will be thorns, admire them for what they are and move on!
I want to congratulate all of you in advance on bucking the trend and making 2010 the year where you turn those New Years resolutions into real achievements!! WELL DONE!!!
P.S.: remember there is always a friendly Life Coach nearby to help, motivate and support you. He/She is only a phone call or email away.