New Year's Resolutions vs Goals

Maybe it's just me but I never saw the point in setting New Year's resolutions.  People come up with the generic resolutions ever year saying things like "I'm going to lose weight" or "I'm going to work harder."   Although, I'm a firm believer in having goals, I believe setting goals and making resolutions are two very different concepts.

As a child, my Dad made me sit down and write out my goals both short term and long term and this was never done during New Years.  He always emphasized that writing your goals down, not just saying them aloud, trains your thoughts.  Let me also say my Dad was a fan of Zig Ziglar in the 80s so he taught me everything he learned from reading books and listening to tapes.  Even today I write my goals down, whether it's a daily Things-to-Do Lists or setting long term goals, because it not only serves as a reminder but it makes you more accountable in your actions.

Resolutions are empty thoughts while goals are actual, deliberate statements.  A resolution would be "I'm going to exercise more" while a goal would be "I'm going to exercise three times a week, for a minimum of 30 minutes a day."  There's a clear difference.  Plus goals should always have a time limit or commitment.  For instance, a resolution would be "I'm going to get out of debt" while a goal would be "I'm going to pay off my credit card by May 31, 2010." 

Goal setting needs to be something that makes sense, it should be deliberate in thought and action.  In order to successfully reach your goals, you must have a solid plan which provides a way to execute the goal.  With that said, let's stop wasting time with resolutions and spend more time developing goals.