A New Look at New Year’s Resolutions

  The Questions You Should Ask Yourself to Be Successful Two years ago I started participating in a local boot camp called “Bootcamp Tulsa”. I needed to kick start my fitness program and a friend invited me to try it out. I was so motivated by it that I entered a membership contest. I convinced nearly everyone I knew to come with me and in the end, I won the contest and a two-year lease on a luxury Mercedes. Beyond winning a car (which, yes, was very cool) participating in this boot camp has helped me live a healthier, happier and much more productive life. It has helped me reach weight loss and fitness goals. But like any worthwhile goal – it wasn’t easy. In fact, at times I would say it’s been a struggle – a sacrifice. One of Bootcamp Tulsa’s sayings is “Are you willing to sacrifice what you want most in life for what you want at the moment?” In other words, what are you willing to sacrifice? For me the first thing I sacrificed was sleep. To meet my fitness goals, it meant getting up at 4 a.m. (yes you read that right) for a 5:15 a.m. class. It meant altering my eating and lifestyle habits. But that’s what I had to do to fit this in to my already busy lifestyle of running a national franchise system AND meeting my goals of getting back into my favorite “skinny jeans”. But the benefit was much greater than that. I am a firm believer that being healthy and fit will spill over into all aspects of your life. And the overall benefit to my life outweighed the sacrifices to me, so I was successful. So as you set your goals and resolutions for 2016, try these three steps and ask yourself some important questions.

1. What are your top three goals? Make a list. Whether it is to start a business, begin a fitness program three days or week or pay off $5000 in debt, write them down.

2. What is it you must sacrifice – or give up – to reach these goals? Make a list of everything you must give up to meet each goal (less sleep, late nights, French fries, less shoe shopping).

3. Review both lists and then decide what you are actually willing and able to sacrifice to achieve your goals. Be honest with yourself.

4. Make a final list with three columns. Keep it somewhere that you can see it every day.

1. Column One – Resolution
2. Column Two – What you must sacrifice
3. Column Three – The benefit. What you will GAIN by following #1 and #2

Then you can decide: does the benefit – the end result – outweigh the sacrifice in your mind. If the answer is yes then you are on your way to keeping those resolutions. Blessings for a new year! I am cheering for you.  – Shannon Shannon Wilburn is the CEO & Co-founder of Just Between Friends Franchise Systems, Inc. (JBF), North America’s leading children’s & maternity consignment event. JBF has 150 franchises in 28 states and Canada. JBF is actively seeking franchisees throughout North America. Click here to learn more.