Get Your Failed New Year’s Resolutions Back on Track: dyvenia’s Goal-Setting Approach

Discover dyvenia’s transformative goal-setting approach with Barbara Kecskés, empowering you to turn failed resolutions into lasting achievements in 2024.

How many times have you woken up after a typically modest (cough cough) New Year's celebration, vowing that–this year–your life will be different, and you give in to the allure of life-changing plans and revolutionary goals, and you suddenly feel good knowing that a "new you" has been born overnight?

We all have been there…

But, what is the secret behind New Year's resolutions? Why do most of them fail? And how can you make sure your resolutions actually work out?

In this blog post, Barbara Kecskés, dyvenia's Senior People & Culture Partner with 7 years of coaching expertise, will delve into this topic and provide you with some answers to these questions. She'll also share dyvenia's proven goal-setting approaches that you can use to achieve career goals and consistent development.

Why Do We Even Make New Year's Resolutions?

When closing a chapter, in this case, a year, of our life, we tend to be nostalgic, reflective, and at times even melancholic. We may feel the need to turn everything upside down as things have not worked out as we wished they would when goals were not met, when losses were suffered, or when we got blocked and were unable to move forward. 

All of those could be sources of unrealistic goals and expectations towards both life and ourselves, as we feel that only a "new me" could face challenges and handle it all.

Why Do So Many New Year's Resolutions Fail?

Research suggests that a significant portion—around 60% to 80%—of New Year's resolutions may fail by February. The reasons for this eventual quitting can be many, but the most common ones include:

• setting unrealistic goals, 
• lack of a clear plan or support system, 
• setting too many resolutions at once, and 
• not seeing immediate results.

But you don't have to be just another statistic! You can still turn failure into success. Wait, did I just say failure?

Unreached Goals Don't Mean Failure

It's important to note that while many resolutions may not be fully achieved, it doesn't mean they're complete failures. Sometimes progress is made, habits improve, and lessons are learned even if the initial goal isn't entirely reached. 

Viewing resolutions in black-and-white terms, such as success or failure, can be detrimental. In contrast, cultivating a mindset that acknowledges setbacks as part of the process can help you overcome the difficulties and continue building positive habits.

Take It Easy

The key might be breaking goals down into smaller, digestible parts, adjusting the plan if needed (when we face unexpected challenges), cultivating habits over time rather than expecting immediate change, as well as being kind to yourself, and appreciating small steps over massive changes.

Goals for Growth: dyvenia's Goal-Setting Approach

At dyvenia, we initiate our goal-setting process, known as Goals for Growth, in the early months of the year. This process follows closely on the heels of the previous year's performance assessment. We do this to leverage the insights and feedback gathered, as they play a crucial role in guiding our focus for the months ahead.

Here's how we set the stage for success in 4 steps:

1. Assess your foundations:
   1. Revisit your performance review from the previous year and identify areas for improvement.
   2. Check your job description for insights into performance expectations and developmental opportunities.
   3. Evaluate ongoing projects to identify skill gaps and competencies crucial for success.

2. Use dyvenia's BUS framework to break down your goals:
   1. Break it down: Identify the specific skills, competencies, and knowledge required to achieve your goal.
   2. Understand: Develop a plan of action for addressing the components you've identified. Determine the tools, courses, books, training, or mentorship needed and where to access them.
   3. Share: Consider how you and others will benefit from your achievement and strategize how to share your story, knowledge, and findings with others.

For more detailed information on the BUS framework, refer to our dedicated blog post How Can You Jumpstart Your Data Professional Career?

3. Ensure your goals align with ART principles:
   1. Aligned: Confirm that your goals align with the company's overarching direction.
   2. Relevant: Ensure that your objectives are closely tied to your everyday tasks and responsibilities.
   3. Timely: Set goals that provide immediate support as you navigate your daily workload.

4. Verify your goals meet SMART criteria:

1. Specific: Make your goals concise and focused to facilitate effective planning.
2. Measurable: Establish clear metrics to track your progress and accomplishments.
3. Achievable: Set realistic goals that you can reasonably accomplish within a defined timeframe.
4. Relevant: Ensure that your goals align with your personal values and long-term objectives.
5. Time-based: Establish ambitious yet achievable deadlines to enhance task prioritization and motivation.

Worried about keeping track of all these components? No need for concern! We've simplified the process with a user-friendly goal-setting template available for download. This template can be easily customized to align with your specific needs.

For your convenience, we're providing a pre-filled template example below, complete with comprehensive instructions to guide you.

Template elements: 

1. Goal name: A brief title summarizing your objective.
2. Goal description: Elaborate on the goal's significance, expectations, and desired outcomes.
3. Break it down - Understand - Share: Follow our BUS framework.
4. Type: Categorize your goals based on performance, development, or project relevance.
5. SMART: A final check to ensure your goals meet specific criteria for success.

Conclusion

Creating a "new me" means building up new habits, new values, and a new belief system–in short a new identity. It's a hell of a job and doesn't guarantee improvement. Think about it: your friends and loved ones liked the "old you" for a reason. So, instead, build on the "old you" and make some nice fixes here and there, which, believe me, will be good enough for 2024. And remember, as you pursue your goals, dyvenia's approach is here to support you every step of the way. Here's to a successful 2024!