Let's face it: it's easy to fail when it comes to sticking to resolutions — so much so that many people swear never to make resolutions again. Yet, deep down inside, we are still hopeful that we can improve our lives in some way at the beginning of each new year.  I'm here to tell you that you can do it and in this Guide, I'll show you how.

The Problem with Most Resolutions

Every January at Genesis, I see a lot of optimism in the hearts of perspective new clients that find their way to our Center to achieve their "weight loss" New Year's Resolutions.  Unfortunately, not everyone who comes to Genesis is a good match for the level of personal fitness and development we offer. 

And so those who don't become part of our private Genesis community often find themselves without a definitive plan on how they're going to achieve their new resolutions, particularly when they involve losing weight, improving their bodies and optimizing their personal health.  Sadly, much of their enthusiasm and hope often fades within weeks, often coming to a failed end.

Whether your New Year's Resolutions have to do with losing weight, getting in better shape, or any other admirable self-improvement endeavor, the fact of the matter is that New Year's resolutions usually fail because of a combination of some of these reasons:

• We try to do too many resolutions at once, and that spreads our focus and energies too thin. It's much less effective to do many habits at once.
  
  

• We only have a certain amount of enthusiasm and motivation, and it usually runs out because we try to do too much, too soon. We spend all that energy in the beginning and then run out of steam.
  
  

• We try to change really tough habits right away, which means it's difficult and we become overwhelmed or intimidated by the difficulty and quit.
  
  

• We try to be "disciplined" and do very unpleasant habits, but our nature won't allow that to last for long. If we really don't want to do something, we won't be able to force ourselves to do it for long.
  
  

• Life gets in the way. Things come up unexpectedly that get in the way of us sticking with a habit.
  
  

• Resolutions are often too vague and lack specifics.  For example, "I'm going to start exercising!" — but that doesn't contain a concrete action plan or use proven habit techniques. That's a recipe for failure.

There are other reasons, but the ones above are easily sufficient to stop resolutions from succeeding.

The 4 Changes Method

So what should you do to make your New Year's Resolutions turn into "New Year Achievements"?  I've created what I call The 4 Changes Method to help you become a success - here's what it entails:

• We only focus on one habit change at a time, so our focus and energies aren't spread thinly.
  
  

• We implement the habit changes gradually, so we don't run out of steam.
  
  

• We start out really, really easy, so it isn't intimidating.
  
  

• We focus on the activities with an effective, "plug-n-play" approach so we don't need a ton of "discipline".
  
  

• We take three months to do the habit change, so if something comes up, it's but a small bump in the road. And because we're publicly committed, we're going to get back on track.
  
  

• We have a very specific plan with actions built in, using proven habit change techniques.

I often use this 4 Change Method when I privately coach clients to lose weight here at Genesis.  If you apply The 4 Change Method, you'll do much better than you've done in the past with New Year's Resolutions. You'll focus on creating long-lasting habits rather than trying to reach a short-term goal that fails. You'll maintain your enthusiasm for longer and not become overwhelmed by the difficulty of change.

You'll have habits that will change your life, and that's no small feat.

Implementing The 4 Changes Method

So how does The 4 Changes Method work?  It's simple:

1. Pick 4 habits, and only 4 habits, you want to change in 2010.
   
   

2. Pick 1 of the 4 habits to start with.  In another recent article posted here on our website, I wrote about which type of habit to start with. 
   
   

3. Commit as publicly as possible to creating or changing this new habit in the next 3 months.  Get an "accountability partner" who you can depend on.  At Genesis, when you decide to join one of our weight loss coaching programs, you automatically have this feature built in.  
   
   

4. Break the new habit or the habit you have to change into 6 baby steps, starting with a ridiculously easy step. Example: if you want to lose 20 lbs., the first step is just to get a handle on how much you're eating each day - so track everything you put in your mouth for 3 days and take an average.  Then do it again the next week and compare. 
   
   

5. Choose a "good" trigger for your habit - some action that will cause you to automatically get you closer to your goal or new habit.  Example: if you're goal is to lose 20 lbs., you're going to have to know how much food (calories) you're eating each day.  That means, you'll have to have some type of tracking system so you know if your efforts are paying off.  The trigger might be your dinner meal - after you're done eating dinner, you take the mini-action step of spending 5 minutes on the computer and logging in all the food you ate that day to see if you met your daily calorie target.
   
   

6. Every two weeks, move onto a slightly harder baby step. You'll want to progress faster, but don't. You're building a new habit. Repeat this until you've completed all 6 baby steps over the 3 months.

You now have a new habit! Commit to Habit No. 2 and repeat the process.

All the best to you in 2010!