So you need to lose weight. You aren’t alone. Millions of people are making New Year’s Resolutions right now to lose weight in 2013. However, some people think that making New Year’s Resolutions sets people up for failure.

I believe that NOT making New Year’s Resolutions sets people up for even greater failure. Sure, if you really don’t want to fail, then don’t even try, but what if you made progress in the process? Here are some tips that may help you change the way you think about New Year’s Resolutions and change the way you think about failure and success.

A New Approach

A New Year’s resolution doesn’t have to be black and white. It’s not a pass/fail test that is graded at the end of year. When the year is done, our success is whether we made progress or not – and it’s hard to make progress if you don’t ever try.

Making a New Year’s Resolution is like choosing a new path leading to a new destination. This path, like any road, will have its share of perceived failures – detours, road blocks, accidents and distractions along the way. Once the path is chosen, it’s up to you to decide how you handle these obstacles and whether you will remain on that path or not. This will call for a plan of action – a road map if you will. It’s time to map out your 2013.

The Path to A New You

1. Write it down. Before you can decide what path to take, you have to choose your destination. Where do you want to go? Who do you want to be? What do you want to look like, feel like, perform like? Be as detailed as possible. If you have a lot of weight to lose, don’t stress out about it. You just need to lose weight – it doesn’t matter how much, or how fast, it just matters that you start losing it. Be realistic and honest with yourself. You don’t need to be perfect, you just need to make improvements – and ANYone can improve.

2. What is your first step? What do you need to get you there? Do you need a gym? A trainer? Healthy food? Motivation? Supplements? A friend to support you? Do you need education – or maybe you need a plan to follow? Right it all down. You may not be able to get all the resources you need at once. But, like this journey, you can collect them along the way. Whatever you decide you need, line it all up, decide how you will use what you can, and plan to try it for at least 60 days before you try something else.

3. What will you do? This doesn’t have to be complicated. If you aren’t in a workout routine, make it simple but make it routine. If your goal is weight loss, focus on burning calories with cardio. Set a goal to do a specific exercise for at least 30 minutes a day, like running or doing the elliptical. Set a goal to do that as many days in a row as you possibly can to help you get in a routine.  If you don’t have time to do all 30 minutes at times, make a decision that you will do what you can – even if it’s only 10 minutes.The routine is the most challenging part, so once you are in a routine, you can build your fitness routine from there.

4. When will you do it? Let’s save a lot of time right now and just agree with me that you HAVE time. You just need to MAKE the time. Decide now, when the ideal time will be to workout and set that time aside as if it is a paid job you have to show up for. Hint: It IS a paid job – if you show up, it will pay off.

5. Decide now that quitting isn’t an option. Possibly the greatest tip of all is not what you will do, but what you will think. Since a certain level of failure is inevitable, decide now how you will respond. If you fall, you have to know how you plan to get back up, and what will your mindset be afterwards. Your attitude will make you or break you. You have to realize that the only way to make this work is to never stop trying. So, no matter how often you fail this year, focus on how often you keep trying.You can fail, over and over, but failing doesn’t make you a failure. QUITTING makes you a failure, so quitting simply can’t be an option.

This year can be different, but it requires a different mindset. A physical change starts with a mental change. This is YOUR year to make good changes, both in your mind and in your body. And, no matter how big or small your progress is this year, progress IS success – and that’s a very realistic goal this year. #getafterit in 2013!