“There’s only one corner of the universe you can be certain of improving, and that’s your own self,” said renowned author Aldous Huxley, so what are you waiting for? A new year beckons, full of promise and hope. Crush it with goal setting and be resolute moving forward; begin now:

1. Decide what you want to achieve and then craft a few short and long-term, attainable, somewhat challenging goals, such as lose 10 pounds by March, not 50.
2. Put a positive spin on those goals, too, such as replacing, “I won’t waste any time,” with “I’ll make better use of time.”
3. Give each promise a due date and monitor your progress along the way. If things aren’t working out, try another route.
4. To stay motivated, put post-it reminders around, like on the bathroom mirror and fridge.
5. For a bigger push, go with a reward system like author Paula Danziger, who buys herself a piece of jewelry and gives it to someone to hold until she finishes the book she’s working on.
6. Give yourself plenty of positive self-talk along your way, too, much like that little engine who kept on saying, “I think I can,” instead of saying, “I can’t; it’s too hard.”

Jim Morris knows all about goals. Having failed to make the big leagues in his 20s, he tried again at 35 and made it to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. His advice: “It doesn’t matter how you get there. There will be ups and downs in everybody’s life. It just matters that you don’t quit and that you get there.”

The time to start is now, with best wishes for the new year. ~ Carol