34 Top New Years Resolutions

It's a new year, so you are deciding on your top new years resolutions.

However history shows you succeed less than one percent of the time. I believe most people try to go on willpower, which unfortunately doesn't work for the long term. The key is to build a structure and chunk it down to one main habit at a time.

In the beginning some will power will be needed to get it going. It's a good idea to keep track of your goals using goal tracker or a journal. That's the short version, I talk about it more detail HERE.

So, without further ado here are the top new years resolutions ideas for you to use.

1. Write a 100 Goals list - Get clear on what you want to accomplish. Think about what you want to Be, Do, Have. It's cool to look back what you've accomplished.
2. Start writing a journal daily – You can keep track of your ideas, memories, daily activities towards your goals or write down your intentions
3. Clean out your house and donate unwanted/unused items to charity
4. Set family nights with your family – Do things that are fun for the whole family, bowling nights, ice cream fests, or an amusement park.
5. Schedule date nights with your spouse – Take time to have fun with your spouse, it’s certainly harder to keep this when you have children.
6. Hire a personal trainer – If you’ve been having trouble sticking to your fitness goals, get
7. Hire an image consultant or get a new haristyle – I kind of cheated on this one, I met a girl -- now my wife. It makes you feel good when you wear quality clothes that fit well.
8. Quit Smoking – Amazing that smoking used to be considered ‘okay’ and not bad for you. I wonder what else is being hyped.
9. Limit processed sugar – There are health reports saying sugar is more addictive than previously thought and worse than smoking. I’ve lived on Coco Puffs and Fruit Loops my whole life and still is another hard one for me to cut down on.
10. Automate your finances – How cool is this! You are able to automate payments and savings easily on your fingertips with online banking.
11. Create a personal and/or family mission statement – This is something I did with my wife. It's awesome to create and share a life vision. It doesn’t have to be anything fancy, just a few words on paper to express yourself.
12. Volunteer in an organization that excites you or something you believe in – The fastest way to feel better about yourself is to do something for others.
13. Reduce TV time – You’ve heard this before, but TV turns off your brain and makes for passive living. This is a biggie for me, I love movies, cartoons, sci-fi, and chick flicks. Just don't tell anyone. :)
14. Reduce mindless internet surfing, email – Another biggie for a lot of us. There are even tools like RescueTime to help track how you are spending your time on the computer. The age old instructions from our parents never die: "go outside and play with your friends!"
15. Get out of bed by 5-6am and work on high priority activities - this is one of the top new years resolutions and one of the most difficult one. Because of this, I've been able to get a lot of productive business work and workout before 9am.
16. Learn a new skill – Learning new things keep you young. This can be anything you want from kayaking, a new language, dancing, sports or programming. You name it, if its new and excites you, go for it.
17. Get a home gym or join a gym – This is is one of the top new years resolutions for most people. Most people don't set clear fitness goals and try to do it all at once. Start SMALL and set short and long term fitness plans. For me I wasted money not using a healt club, so I bought PowerBlock dumbbells and a bench. It rocks!
18. Start a business – There are many ways to start a business, it’s never been easier with the internet. It is absolutely NOT too late, things are constantly changing. The trick is to work on the most important tasks first and stick to it.
19. Start doing small side jobs – Focusing on your area of expertise on the side is the fastest way to make a few bucks.
20. Go Green – Do the small things that add up like recycling, removing harmful cleaning chemicals, go to farmer’s markets, etc. Just small things you can do to help the future.
21. Do a 7 or 30 day media fast – No news, blogs, newspapers, talk radio, or magazines. See how you feel at the end of the fast.
22. Learn about investing and INVEST – It doesn’t have to be a large amount or a risky investment. Just open an IRA and learn from the masters. Check out the book Rule #1.
23. Find at least one mentor – This can be in any area of your life (probably your man focus for the year, see #26). It doesn’t have to be the “best” at what they do, unless that’s your goal. They can offer shortcuts you wouldn’t have to figure on your own.
24. Evaluate the past year and 5 years – Are you happy with your progress? If you keep doing what you’ve done, will you be happy in 5 years. If not, DO something about it. So much has changed for me, but I'm excited about my next 5!
25. Keep your top new years resolutions visible – When you are not thinking of your goals it's easier to get off track. I use Google Tasks to keep track of my action steps and my main goals. (in addition to a tracking system)
26. Make a yearly ‘theme’ – make one area of your life a primary focus such as business, relationships, fitness, etc and change it up every year. Try putting your focus on ONE area of your life.
27. Set travel plans to a different country – with the internet tools for researching and connecting, travelling doesn’t have to break your bank. I was able to get my employers to pay for a lot of my adventures.
28. Have an attitude of gratitude – Take nothing for granted and be thankful for everything you have and do. You can express this in a journal, quietly or publicly, whatever works. I'm thankful for the 'net!
29. Write a handwritten note to 3 people you love – Email does not count. Do this to connect/re-connect with someone.
30. Find some creative way to say ‘I love you’ – Do it in a way that’s never been done before and that the person would absolutely love it.
31. Teach someone – Anything that you are good at, calculus, writing, or a language.
32. Do something that scares the crap out of you – This could be anything from skydiving, an open mike night, or contacting a celebrity. Fear is sometimes an indicator of what you SHOULD do and not avoid.
33. Initiate contact from someone who lives in another country – A way to see the other sides of the world and connect.

That wraps up my top new years resolutions. Again, I can't stress this enough, if you have a bad track record (like I did), start small and think of the habits you need to make the change permanent. Have fun!

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