Well it's that time of the year again. Time to take a look back at 2009 and review your successes and failures. What goals did you set out to achieve? How long did it take for those goals to be forgotten? What new year's resolutions are you going to set out to achieve in 2010?

The holidays are a fantastic time of the year to review your successes and failures because it's a time when we are reminded of the important things in life. Perhaps now is the best time to outline what goals are important to you and begin establishing a detailed plan to attain them. 

I don't like "New Year's Resolutions". Even the wording rubs me the wrong way. Why not call them "New Year's Commitments"? Better yet, last year Chris Guillebeau from "The Art of Noncomformity" talked about the process of conducting your own annual review. According to Chris "

Unique to Chris's annual review is the concept of having a yearly theme. You see when we choose goals like "Weight Loss" and "Get Rid of Debt" it limits us to only achieving weight loss and becoming debt-free. There are 3 things to consider when making your 2010 New Year's Commitments

What are you looking to achieve by losing weight and exercising more? What plan of action have you developed that systematically keeps you accountable, but also works in the context of your busy life? Having an annual theme gives a deeper context to your individual goals. If you fail to lose weight despite exercising more and eating better, perhaps now you recognize that you're thinking more clearly and that you have more energy throughout the day. You still may be hobbled by consumer debt, but you've gained a greater consciousness of your monthly cashflow and perhaps you started a retirement account and put money there instead.

At the Wellness Solution Centers in Newtown, PA, chiropractors routinely provide a comprehensive physical examination that includes bloodwork, body fat analysis among numerous other measures. Initial examination takes 1 hour. Patients enter the office with the traditional goals of losing weight, but often find after an 8 week intensive program, their weight has not changed, and in some cases they have even gained weight. Now that the program has been up and running for a few years, patients now come in with goals to lower their blood pressure and improve their cholesterol and triglycerides. When they look at the full measure of their health through bloodwork and body fat analysis, they then realize that they have much more leaner tissue, less inflammation and are in fact much healthier than what they were when they arrived. Limiting your New Year's Commitment to just one outcome measure causes one to monitor their status too frequently. Having a deeper theme to your goals will allow the completion of larger goals and keep your attention away from the small failures.

What's been limiting you from taking action on your goals? Perhaps it's a nonsupportive relationship in your life. Perhaps its the stress of your job. Maybe it's a lack of planning meals, or finding a time that allows you to go to the gym     consistently. When it comes to health goals, many people take action in every way imaginable EXCEPT for the one actionable step they really need to take. Often times people will be chronically sick and spend every other week at their doctor's office. Their goal may be to improve health, and they could exercise, follow-up appropriately with their doctor, but still eat McDonald's once a day. It's difficult to eat healthier at work, when you don't prepare a meal ahead at home.

Our goals can very well be to lose weight, so as to improve deeper goals of self-image and confidence, but what if accomplishing that goal meant you needed to reevaluate how supportive your family and friends were? It's difficult to take care of your debt when you hang out with high-spending friends with their parents' credit card. It's difficult to lose weight when those close to you are continually offering you sugary treats.

When you truly examine your goals appropriately, you have to dig deep to find the patterns behind those goals. You have to identify the root cause of the problem.

I had a close family member approach me about a goal for weight loss. She exclaimed that she did not know what else she could do, she had been working out and eating better and had not seen any results. To figure out her problem, I had to only ask one question. "Well how long ago did you start?". She responded "Two weeks ago".

We live in an information age full of short soundbytes and bulleted lists. To lose weight healthily, you should look to only a few pounds a month of weight loss. When you focus on short-term gains and losses, your consistency becomes short-term.

My theme for 2009 was gratitude. It brought me a beautiful girlfriend, less stress at school and closer and more authentic relationships with family and friends. My theme for 2010 is "following through". I've found that I start projects but leave them half-finished. So many great projects are left unfininished just when they approach the brink of greatness. I assure you 2010 will be different. 

So now that you've had some time to think about it...what's your annual theme for 2010?