Aiming Low: Mini-Resolutions 2011, Part 2

A couple of days ago I shared my mini-resolutions for 2011.  Oddly enough, other people are thinking about resolutions, too.  There must be something in the air.

Well, the Heath Brothers, authors of  Made to Stick and Switch! published an article on helping you stick to your guns this year.  I swear, they're reading my mind.  And let me tell you, it's a scary place!  Here's the article from the December, 2010 edition of Heath Brothers Ideas & News.  Naturally I've included my own contributions in fancy italics.  Fancy italics make everything better.

FIVE TIPS FOR (FINALLY) GETTING YOUR NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTION RIGHT

1.  Don't be ambitious. When change is hard, aim low.  Done and done. A friend of ours, the editor of a wellness magazine, has a "1-Song Workout" that she does on days when she doesn't feel like working out.  She tells herself, "All I have to do is work out for one song," but of course she often gets in a groove and finishes a full workout.  Brilliant idea.  Choosing groovy song now.  It's between Britney's Baby One More Time and Neil Diamond's Sweet Caroline.  You're right, Neil is the obvious choice.  Sweet Caroline (buh, buh, buh) Good times never seemed so good (so good, so good, so good).  Wait, where was I?  Oh yeah, aiming low. So don't set an ambitious New Year's resolution like "I'll work out four times a week."  Instead, plan to do "1-Song Workouts" on Monday and Thursday.  You mean set a mini-resolution to, say, ride my bike once a week?  Check. Leave yourself room to overachieve -- that feeling of "nailing it" is what will keep you hooked.  It may also have something to do with the feeling of buttoning my skinny jeans without laying down on the bed, sweating and grunting until I force the stubborn little button into the hole.

2.  Watch for bright spots. If you're trying to eat healthier, for instance, don't obsess about all the times that you slip and eat an Oreo. Wait, you mean there are people who can eat a singular Oreo?  Whoa. Instead, keep a constant watch on what does work.  If you ate healthy food all day yesterday, how did you get away with it?  You mean there are people who eat healthy, like, all day?  Who ARE these people? Was it because you had healthy "heat & eat" food that was easy to fix?  Was it because you never let yourself get so hungry that you'd crave fatty foods?  Did you avoid the office lunch at the Mexican place?  If you can understand what allowed you to succeed, you can do more of it.  That's bright-spots thinking. This sounds surprisingly like my mini-resolution to keep a log of the things I eat.  These Heath brothers are freaking me out a little bit.  If #3 talks about letting go of unreasonable resolutions, like owning a unicorn, then I'm going to need to sit down for a second and figure out how they found my third grade diary.  And then I'm going to have to figure out a way to pay them hordes of cash so they don't publicize other more embarrassing portions of said diary.

3.  Make simple tweaks in your environment. If you're trying to increase your savings, pay with cash and leave your cards at home.  If you're trying to diet, carry around a Ziploc of apple slices.  I beg to differ, Heath bros.  A baggie of browning apples slices is no match for other more tempting treats.  Instead I suggest the superhero of all fruits, the banana.  It's delicious and requires no slicing.  Peel that fruity perfection and chow down.  Or if the situation is really dire, like a Snickers bar unwraps itself and jumps into your mouth, the only fruit strong enough to do battle with such a dark candy wizard is the clementine.  Clementines taste so much like candy themselves, they immediately defeat other sugary foes. If you're trying to jog, lay out your clothes the night before.  Uh, yeah, jogging is never going to happen. If you're trying to stop oversleeping, set up a double (or triple?) alarm system.  (Or buy a Clocky with your Xmas gift cards!)  This stuff sounds insignificant, but it will make a big difference.

4. Rely on planning, not willpower. Your resolution calls for a new way of behaving.  And that's a challenge because you've been practicing the old way of behaving for a long time.  The old way is well-paved and familiar and comfortable.  No joke, my bad habits are way comfortable, ratty old bathrobe comfortable. So you can't just bet on willpower or good intentions to ensure your success.  Use your planning skills.  Get yourself on the hook for something!  Don't plan to "learn Spanish."  Register for a Spanish course at your local community college.  Do it right now -- you're already online.  Or don't "try hard" to go to the gym in the morning.  Email your friend, right now, and tell 'em to come get you at 7am on January 3. Better yet, e-mail that friend and start today so that when January 3rd rolls around, you're an old pro.  And when you've scheduled an early morning walk with that friend and it's pouring rain, do not go to Starbucks and inhale a muffin and hot chocolate.  No, dear reader, lay down your pride, pull on your walking shoes, and become a Mall Walker.  Not only will you have a great time with your friend, but you'll speed past other mall walkers in a blaze of glory, holding your chin high in the air as you beat the pants off of all of them!  It matters little that they are three times your age.  And, yes, it's perfectly acceptable to yell "Suck it, slowpokes!" as you zip past them.  Hang on, Terry says that's actually not acceptable.  Hmmm, mall walking just got a lot less exciting.

5.  Publicize your resolution. We all know peer pressure works.  So use it on yourself.  Tell everybody you know what your resolution is.  Or tell everyone you know AND lots of people you don't know, like say, on your blog. They'll bug you about it, and you won't want to disappoint them.  Bring on the bugging and I'll do my best not to disappoint. Just knowing that they know will make you more likely to succeed.  Hell, if you want, tell us.  Okay, Heath brothers, but remember you asked for it. We won't bug you about it, but we'll silently root for you. I have to say I've never really understood the point of 'silent rooting'.  Here are a list of things I do understand: big, shiny, gold stars for sticking to my mini-resolutions, a jar full of cash that I earned because I literally worked my tush off, and maybe a tiara that proclaims me Queen of Mini-Resolutions.  Just sayin'.

I don't know about you, but I'm chomping at the bit for 2011 to get here so I can officially start kicking booty at my mini-resolutions, but it's late and I have a walking date in the morning.  So I'm off to bed to dream about racing senior citizens.  And riding unicorns.

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