Reset Your Goals and Beat "Blue Monday" By Creating Habits That Stick
January can be a challenging time of year. The Christmas cheer is over, the weather is usually cold and gloomy, and it can be hard to stay motivated. But don’t let the January blues get you down – there are plenty of things you can do to make positive changes in your habits this month and beat "Blue Monday." Make January 15th a reset day of positive change.
Have You Set The Right Goals For You?
As we begin a new year, it is important to take a step back and reassess our goals to make sure that they align with our core values. Our core values can be thought of as our guiding principles, the things that we actually care about and that we strive to live by.
You may have found that you aren't putting as much time and effort into your goals as you had planned for your New Year's resolution. If so, it is time to reassess whether your goal is actually what you are motivated to achieve or is something you believe you ‘should’ achieve.
To reassess your goals, take some time to reflect on your strengths and core values and ask yourself how you can direct these values into personal progress.
If your goals are not aligned with your personal values, this is the perfect time to adjust or even create new ones. This will give us the best chance of achieving them and living a life that is reflective of our values, leading to life satisfaction.
SMART Goal Setting
One of the best things to do is to set goals, specifically SMART goals if you are looking to make progress this year. Make them:
- Specific
- Measurable
- Achievable
- Realistic
- Time-bound
When setting SMART goals, it is important to make sure they are specific so that you can easily measure your progress, achievable so that you can actually accomplish them, realistic so that you don’t set yourself up for failure, and time-bound so that you have a deadline to work towards. By setting SMART goals for yourself this January, you can stay motivated and productive throughout the year and achieve your goals.
Achieving these smart goals can challenge you to form new habits for personal growth and success this new year...
How To Create Habits That Stick
By Instinct coach Sam Rigg. See more from Instinct+ here.
Everybody knows that to make a lifestyle change and become a fitter and healthier version of yourself, you have to set habits. What most people don’t know is the science behind habits and how to make habits that stick.
Instinct trainer, Sam Rigg, explains how to create real habits that can make a real difference.
Habits are actions that have been repeated enough times to become an automatic behaviour. Habit change is what drives you towards your goals.
Getting 1% better every day starts with slight habit changes or alterations to your current ones. These small changes may not happen overnight, however, they will provide the most powerful changes over time.
The cue triggers a craving, motivating a response, providing a reward, satisfying a craving, which ultimately becomes associated with the cue. Together, these four steps form a neurological feedback loop, called the habit loop.
Become aware of your habit loops…
Everything we do has this scientific ‘habit loop’, it becomes that automatic that we don’t notice it. Becoming aware of habit loops means we can make cues to new habits stand out, whilst also becoming aware of the habit cues of our existing habits and change them for the better…
Positive example: You walk into Fuel, this initiates the crave of eating healthy, you respond by eating a healthy meal. You’re rewarded with healthier eating.
You then associate going to Fuel with being healthy.
We have to learn to walk before we can run…
Habits are developed by repeated automatic behaviours throughout the day. They influence our purpose, attitude, actions etc. and the main purpose of creating positive habits is to solve the problems of life through small changes everyday.
Use small habit changes to increase exercise, improve your diet, develop better lifestyle choices, and with that, you will become physically and mentally stronger.
Remember it’s a process not an instant fix. It takes time and it’s okay to have an off day. Use that off day as a positive motivator to fuel you for the rest of your choices. Learn from your mistakes, don’t shy away from them. Acknowledge them and try again moving forward.
If at first you don’t succeed, try try again..
Remember…
Habits take time and effort on your part to implement, be patient and kind to yourself when things don’t go to plan. Review and work forwards again.
Think of habits as small cogs contributing to the function of a much larger machine, make sure each tiny part is turning efficiently and working the right way, so that the machine functions maximally.
If you treat your habits in this way, your results will be all the more impressive.
Support and Resources
Are you feeling more than just the January Blues? Reach out to the Samaritans if you need support: Samaritans.org
Brew Monday
Take time to connect this January and help combat loneliness.
Brew Monday is an initiative that promotes the benefits of reaching out to friends and family over a cup of tea or coffee. It is a day to encourage people to take time out of their busy lives to connect with their loved ones and check in on how they are doing.
Brew Monday was created by the Samaritans charity to help people to help each other reduce the risk of loneliness, something that has become an increasing issue in recent years. Taking the time to connect with another person can help to reduce stress, improve mental well-being and encourage open conversations about mental health.
Brew Monday is a great way to show your friends and family that you care and to help combat loneliness in your community. For more ways to get involved visit: samaritans.org
