It’s that time again; we’ve brought in a new year. With a new year comes the idea of new starts, transformations and making changes. While approaching a New Year, a lot of people make New Year resolutions and most of them never see them through. Some people have given up on some resolutions and some hate to even hear others talk about theirs; reason being, they’ve witnessed so many resolutions fall short.

I am not one of those people; I still believe in the power of resolutions because in order for the human mind to grow it has to have a goal and a resolution is a goal. The problem is a resolution alone does not equip you with what you need for it to become a reality. By definition, a resolution is a firm decision to do or not do something. It’s an idea, it’s a concept, it’s a vision, it’s a great thing to have but unfortunately it only exist in our mind: it’s not real.

I love to look at car magazines to see the newest cars coming out but the one thing in them that I have a love/hate relationship with is the concept cars. In my opinion these cars are the best looking cars. They’re always so sleek and futuristic, they make me want to find a way to get enough money to buy them but I could never purchase them because they’re just concepts. These cars are never being released. The ones that you can purchase they will tell you when the car manufacturer “Plans” to release them but the concept cars, they’re just concepts. They are great ideas that are good to look at but something you could never have.

This is exactly how are lives are if all we have are resolutions alone. The only difference between the concept cars and the others were “Plans” of releasing. This plan includes 5 steps. Creating a blueprint, identifying all the parts needed to make it, acquiring the parts, assembling the car, testing the car and then they are able to release the car to the public. So if you’ve made a New Year resolution, you’re off to a good start but without a plan you’ll never move past the start line. Let me show you how to incorporate these 5 steps into your life.

Step 1: Creating a Blueprint.

When we have our original idea, it is never in its fullest form. We have a shell of what it really should become when we first think of it, so the first thing we have to do is sit down to envision exactly how we want the end result to look, even something as simple as losing weight. Of course you want to be smaller but exactly how do you want to look? Do you want to look lean or do you want to look muscular? Are you trying to be slim enough for skinny jeans or do you just want to lose enough weight to be healthy? We have to take our ideas from an embryonic state to a fully matured design of the finished work.

This is the most important step because the rest of the steps hinge on this. You are the architect of your life, so if you don’t have a blueprint or you have a faulty one, what you are building has no chance of lasting. So think about the idea, think about how it can grow, and think about how it has to look in order to work to its fullest potential in this world. Get the image of you at the pinnacle of its success in your mind and even write it down. If you want this resolution to be reality you have to see the end at the beginning so be descriptive.

Think about how you’re going to act once it’s real. Think of how you’re going to dress, the type of places you’re going to eat, how it’s going to cause you to interact with others, how others will see you, how it will make you feel about you, how it will affect your finances, how it will set you apart from others etc. Your end goal should alter every area of your life in some way; it’s your job in this step to figure out how. Before you go any further, the image in your mind or that you’ve written down should be as detailed as a blueprint for a car or building. Take time to conclude how the express appearance of the best version of you looks. Once you have that image, then you can move on to step 2.

Step 2: Identifying all the parts needed.

Now that you have the blueprint of how you want your life to look, you have to identify what you need to make it happen. For example, if the ending image of a car is to be an off road vehicle, they would have to identify what kind of tires are needed to actually operate off road.  What does it take for you to operate in your resolution? Do you need to go to college or can you go to a certificate program? Do you need to stay away from certain people or places? Do you need to be reminded of a particular action that you want to add or subtract from your life? According to your goal you have to recognize what it takes for it to work.

Are there books you can read on it? Are there classes you can attend? Is there anything you can do yourself to accomplish this? The answer to all of these questions is yes. Let’s say you want to think more positively. Not only can you read books and attend classes, you can put positive post all around your home to remind you of how you want to think. You can get a bracelet made with something positive on it similar to the WWJD bracelet. All of these things are tools that could help meet this goal.

Let’s say you want to quit smoking.  You could get a nicotine patch or electric cigarette, you can join a smoking 12 step program or you could think of things that trigger your desire for smoking and alter them.  If you only smoke when you’re with a certain person or at a certain place, you could avoid them. You could pick up a new hobby that you can replace smoking with when you feel the urge. No matter the goal, there are instruments that are needed whether physical or mental adjustments.

There is nothing new under the sun so there is someone that has already done what you’re attempting to do. Research how others have done it. What steps they took. What barriers they encountered along their journey. Who or what helped them. I’m not one that believes experience is the best teacher; I believe learning from someone else’s experience is the best teacher. There is no need for us to tackle something blind and make unnecessary mistakes that could have been avoided by observing someone else’s journey. In this step exhaust every resource you can find in order to learn what is needed and in some cases what is mandatory for you to achieve your resolution.

Step 3: Acquiring the Tools.

At this point you have your blueprint and a list of things needed, now it’s time for you to move out of thinking mode and shift to action mode. This is where you will either make or break your resolution. Some of us can sit and think and research for months on end but never get out the house to act on what we’ve learned. If we really want to see the change that we’ve been pondering and studying on, we have to make some moves.

You found out that in order to meet your goal that it requires you to have some formal education. Get up right now and apply for the classes you need. Don’t begin to make any excuses. School isn’t for me or it’s going to take too long or I’m too old for school. If your goal is for you then school is for you. If school is too long, living the rest of your life unhappy is even longer. If you’re too old for school you’re definitely too old for success.  Excuses are the parents of failure. Get rid of them and start acting according to what you want.

Some of you are going to find out that at this present time you’re unable to get what you need. Does this mean that you give up? No, this means that you have a goal inside of a goal. If you want to start your own business, that takes money and you might not have enough right now. In this case you need to learn how to save money. There are tons of resources on money management that can help you accumulate the money you need. All you have to do is put forth the effort.

Effort will beat out ability any day of the week. If you don’t put any forth, then prepare to be another person with a resolution that you never attained. What I tell everyone I coach to do is spend a minimum of one hour a day doing something to bring them closer to their dreams. If you have a scheduled time where you will get up and do something, it will become easier for you to avoid excuses. So right now think of some free time that you have and plan to use it to acquire a tool needed to take you to the next level. If you don’t have an hour then use whatever time you have. If you have to stop by a place on your way to work, during your lunch break or after work, then intend on making that stop. Don’t stop at thinking about your resolution, get up, get out and obtain what you need.

Step 4: Assembly

When building a car, once they have all the parts they start an assembly line where every part is then placed on the car. This step requires the most dedication. In like manner to a car’s assembly line, in the beginning when you start to put all your pieces together it’s not going to look like the finished product. It’s going to look like so incomplete that you will have thoughts of aborting the mission or speeding up the process. Don’t do it.

If a manufacturer is in a hurry and puts the body of the car on but doesn’t put any of the parts to the engine in, it will look good but it won’t be going anywhere. We don’t want to be people who look like we have it all together but don’t, so we have to be dedicated to this process. We have to be dedicated to learning, practicing and even getting it wrong sometimes.

We have to go step by step in their proper order and be comfortable with each part of the process we’re in when we’re in them. If the part of your assembly line that you’re in is still reciting to yourself in the morning “I will not allow my co-workers to pull me into gossiping” then recite it every day and don’t lose it if you got caught up one day. You’re not at that part of the line yet but last year you weren’t reciting anything, you were enjoying gossiping. Celebrate the fact that you are on the line.

Keep believing in yourself and stay the course. The only thing that can keep you from your goal at this point is getting off the line. As long as you are on the line you are headed for completion. If it’s school then go to class, self-teaching then keep reading, changing your thinking then keep speaking to yourself, going to the gym then don’t miss a day, whatever it is stay the course. Finish everything you need to finish and you will be on the cusp of fulfilling your resolution.

Step 5: Testing

At this point you have everything you need for your resolution to be complete; all you need to do now is test it. After a car leaves the assembly line, it has to be test driven before it can be sold in order to assure that it works properly. It’s possible for you to have everything you need and still not complete your resolution. We have the capability of psyching ourselves out of doing something that we’re 100{9c4894d8d84789fd9dbc6ac72b5d605407abbbce150dd0041f8be6ae2d1a6325} capable of doing so right now it’s important that you go ahead and test yourself.

As a speaker I’m always asked how you get over the fear of speaking in front of crowds. The only answer I have is just doing it. I don’t care how much you speak in front of the mirror or how much you’ve studied what you’re going to speak on; the only thing that will get the fear out is just doing it. In like manner you have to trust your process. You have to know that you have went through all the necessary prerequisites and that you CAN be that image of yourself that you imagined.

So step out there. If you have the money and the education, don’t be afraid, open that business. If you don’t have the urge to smoke then go ahead and hang out with that person that you used to smoke with. If you’ve removed the malice from your heart, go around that person that would make you mad and speak a kind word to them. If you have went through the entire process then you are ready for the world.

This is how you fulfill your New Year resolution. You plan it out. I don’t know what everyone’s resolutions are but these principles will help anyone to achieve theirs. Don’t end 2017 the way you started it, with a resolution; spend 2017 working your plan so that you will end it either at your goal or on the road to it.

For a detailed book full of action steps to take your life to the next level. Pick up a copy of Transformational Growth.