I saw on Good Morning America this morning that this is the most likely week for people to give up on their New Year’s resolutions (namely weight loss/fitness). What a shame! Why set goals if we cannot stick to them? What does this teach our own children? Can we expect them to set and keep goals if we can’t? Certainly not!

So what’s the problem? I think people are unrealistic about how to get where they want to go. There is no such thing as successful extreme dieting,  results-oriented temporary workouts or instant business success. No one can go for a long period of time depriving themselves and expect that to last. Nor can they exercise rigorously for a while, quit and then expect to stay fit. And in business, instant success is for the movie screen and not the real world.

No matter what we want to accomplish, we’ve got to stick to it. Goal setting guarantees you’ll experience frustration and doubt and unfortunately, it does NOT guarantee success. People who have accomplished great things will all tell you they “fell off the bandwagon” a few times when it came to reaching their goals. But what sets them apart from the rest of us? They pick themselves up, dust themselves off and get right back on the bandwagon.

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So set a great example for your kids. Set realistic, achievable goals. If you have a slump, don’t beat yourself up. And for heaven’s sake, don’t quit. Get right back up on that bandwagon.

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