Have you been at the point of wanting to make a New Year’s Resolution only to find that inwardly you believe you will fail in a few days or a few weeks down the road?

I was standing in line at the bank today and the woman behind me began to grumble about the long wait.

She said, “Just like a fast food place, they “claim” to be fast but you wait and wait.” She rolled her eyes in disgust and let out a heavy sigh.

I smiled inwardly and said, “I understand, but you know I’ve been in this bank numerous times throughout the year and there have never been any lines for me to stand in. I didn’t realize how much I took that for granted until this moment. In fact, I was standing here thinking about all the other things I took for granted in 2009 and how much I have to be thankful for and just how fortunate I am to be right here.”

I wasn’t sure if she wanted to hit me as she stared at me with a look of, “What kind of planet are you from?”or if she was processing what I just said.

Slowly she squinted at me. She lifted her hand to lower her glasses so she could see me over the top of them and said, “Huh! I guess you’re right. I hadn’t really thought about it until you brought it up just now. I guess one of my resolutions ought to be not to complain so much.”

Wow! “Nice!”, I thought.

She then opened her mouth and went on with complaining about the snow, the cold, the cashiers, and even the long lines.”

Did you notice her key phrase included the words – “so much”? Perhaps she didn’t even know her speech was one of continual complaining and that is part of the problem with most of us. We don’t even know.

From the moment you get out of bed until the moment you climb back in you are either creating resolutions or redundancy. If we truly want to be done with complaining then our resolve can be strong enough to withstand the temptation. If we want to be wishy-washy about it, then we’ll be like reeds in the wind swaying from side to side, and succumb to the temptation again.

Example: To throw in the “so much” still gave her the opportunity, permission if you will, to repeat the negative behavior.

One might say, “Well you have to start somewhere!” and this would be true, except that there are plenty of ‘some where’s’ along our journey that lead to ‘no where’.

If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got right?

Will we be perfect at holding our ground in resolutions? Likely not if you allow doubt to slide under, over or through the goal. Is it possible for you to hold firm without letting doubt interfere? YES!

Here are a 5 easy tips to help you secure your resolutions this year.

1. Commit to it all the way. Write it down and keep it in front of your eyes during the day.

2. Set attainable goals for a time period – like 1 month at a time.

3. Decide right now to get back on track again no matter how many times you fall off.

4. Give someone else permission to hold you accountable to it.

5. Celebrate each time you recognize a small victory. (Do a jig, give yourself a high five if no one is around)

If you want to succeed, then forgo redundancy and live into your resolutions with joy and faith! I KNOW You can do it because I BELIEVE IN YOU!