Mid January is apparently the time when most people drop their New Years resolution.  That’s approximately 15 full days of telling yourself you can’t eat chocolate etc.

Its funny how telling yourself you can’t have or do something can lead to wanting it even more.

I have just returned from the supermarket and witnessed several children screaming and throwing tantrums because they wanted things their parents said they couldn’t have.  Whilst we may not throw ourselves across the shop floor screaming how much we want a bag of Haribo (possibly because we would just buy them if we wanted them that much), constant denial of something we want can be a challenge.

So if you’re falling off the wagon when it comes to your New Years resolution what you can do?

Here are a few tips that work for us:

Frame your thoughts in a positive context.  Rather than thinking ‘ I am on a diet’ tell yourself and others that you’re eating a healthier diet.  It sounds simple or a little pink and fluffy but research suggests that thinking in a positive way opens the mind to new possibilities rather than closing it down.

Get back on the bus.  Everyone deserves a day off.  If you have fallen off the bus or wagon celebrate your day off and get back into your regime tomorrow.

Share your goals and resolutions with others.  You may be quick to let yourself down but instinctively, you may think twice about letting other peoples perception of you be less than brilliant.

Chunk down your goals.  Create and mark bite sized milestones along the way.

Celebrate goals as you reach them and revisit your goal or resolution.  It may have changed.

Look for opportunities rather than excuses.  Personally I am maximizing opportunities to exercise more from now on and had to have serious words with myself as I was about to get into the car to go to the shops.  OK it’s not on the corner, maybe a mile or so (but its up hill all the way- so a really good opportunity for exercise).  I found myself making every excuse possible not to walk there to begin with.

Do it with friends.  Things are usually more fun when there’s more than one.  Join a club, work alongside a friend who has similar resolutions or goals.  Support each other when the going gets hard.

Reflect and keep a log or evidence.  Being able to see how far you have come can be really motivational.  I have a friend who keeps a photo on her fridge door of when she was considerably heavier than she is now and another who is so proud of running a marathon because at one time he couldn’t jog for more than ten minutes without being out of breath and heading home.

At DKB we are all focusing on developing ourselves and the business and we hope that you are getting along with your personal resolutions or New Year committments too.

Keep up the great work, keep positive and if you have any other ideas to keep us focused during 2018 and beyond we would love to hear how you remain focused so we can all give up giving up!