With the end of the decade and entering the year of 2020, some people are setting themselves up for failure with the years old trend of New Year’s resolutions. How believable is this statement, a man who has never run an ultra-marathon, who has not worked out in ten years, says he is going to run an ultra-marathon tomorrow and break a record? For most this is not believable at all. Most people would respond to this statement with “of course he will not”. This is obvious to people that will is most likely not going to happen and many people believe this statement, starting New Year’s Year I am going to eat properly and going to go to the gym and workout every day for a whole year. Or a person who never wrote anything before says starting New Year’s Day they are going to write a thousand words every day for a year.
All of those statements are essentially saying the same thing, and yet only one is seen as ridiculous. For a person who is not used to writing thousands of words every day for a year, that is an ultra-marathon, but in the form of writing. That person is setting-up for failure. The same applies for the person going to the gym every day. Then by the first month or two they wonder why they failed. The reason was right in front of them from the start of the journey, they did create these goals with the right reasons. In other words, they did not fuel their car with the right fuel. New Year’s Resolution mentality is almost identical to the loser mentality.
Some people ask me how to stay disciplined with the goals I set for myself and want to know how I am still motivated after years. My reasons are simple, one, I did not wait for the new year to start. Two, I do not believe in motivation. Three, I made sure I had the right mentality when I started. For example, almost three years ago in February I decided I was going to write one poem every day till the day I die. How is that going now? I am coming up on three years straight. I still have not failed to write a poem. Another example, I decided in June I was going to study and practice chess every day for at least one hour. Here I am now still going strong and not planning to stop. I even surprised myself by reading 38 chess books from June to now.
For those wanting some motivation. There were plenty of moments where I wanted to throw my chess board in the trash bin. If you do not believe me ask anyone who was around me everyday. Of course, it did not feel good when other people were improving and I was going nowhere especially when I was putting in the hours, but I did not care. I was playing the long game. I was only focusing on my game not what the others were doing, it only mattered to me what my quality of play was like. People at the gym would wonder why I would be looking at my reflection in the glass windows of the track when I was running. I do that because the only person I am racing is myself.
The people that pumped up on New Year’s Resolution’s thinking that the motivation and power needed to overcome all of the barriers and handicaps that they have in their lives is suddenly just going to come to them on January 1st and allow them to make all the changes they want and that has been blockaded for a whole year is suddenly going to appear for them, is just complete bullsh*t. There is nothing more special about the new year of 2020 then the next second that is coming up. Waiting is wasting. No more of this I will start tomorrow. Instead make it starting now. What I think of New year’s Resolutions is simple, here is a quote from Arnold Schwarzenegger
“Sit down, because if you think this way, you’re gonna be a loser, you’re never gonna make it. Because there’s no maybe. You’ve got to get up and say I want to be a champion.”