Equipping young women professionals with young families to find fulfillment, contentment and joy as mothers and home makers without losing sight of who they are as women.

Volume 01 Issue 14: Commit Yourself to Action

I get very excited at the commencement of a new year; because every new year is a new beginning. It gives us yet another opportunity to get it right regardless of how the previous year turned out. A chance to leave behind the challenges and failures of the past year and embark on a new journey. A journey full of potential for new successes.

How do you want 2011 to turn out for you? Granted, there are things that are out of our control but there certainly are a host of things that are squarely within our grip. Was 2010 a success or a flop for you? Were you able to attain the resolutions you made or did most of them fall through the cranks? Well, whatever the case, 2010 is behind us and before us is a brand new chance to have a go at getting it right all over again.

In case you didn’t achieve your goals for 2010, the best you can do is get over it and embrace 2011 with renewed zeal and determination. In case you did well, that success is now in the past and it would be foolish to bask in the glory of former success. In fact, the stakes are even higher for you if you attained most of your goals for last year. It’s time to look at what went well and build on your past successes. Aim higher. Aim for the moon; you may not hit it but you will be happy to land among the stars.  “The greatest danger is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it”. Michelangelo.

Your success in 2011 is about becoming more of who you are capable of being. Imagine what you want out of 2011 for yourself and others, then plan to and do something every day to make it happen. Having realized the importance of daily habits, I appreciate how they have a way of getting one on top of things. The important thing is to do something each day, even if you think it is a small thing. It is in the bits and pieces that the overall goal is realized. As you set your goals for 2011, break them down to the things you need to do monthly, weekly and daily; and then commit to it to attain what you set out to do.

Hold yourself responsible to a higher standard than anybody else expects of you. Take charge of what becomes of you in 2011. Don’t shortchange yourself by leaving anything to chance. Create a living plan; something flexible, realistic and achievable. You can revise it as you gain more information and experience. Each morning visualize what you want to see happen and plan your day while remaining flexible enough to handle the day’s surprises.

Cease from making resolutions for resolutions sake and call yourself to meaningful action. Commit your plans to paper since writing down your goals calls you to action more than anything. As you set your goals, answer the question “why”. Why do you want to achieve that? Is it in line with your purpose? Unless the reason to the why is compelling enough, you will not have the motivation to do what it takes to achieve your goal.

Lillian Chebosi