5 Easy New Year’s Resolution Hacks

I don’t necessarily like to read, but I do love learning from highly successful experts in their fields. Needless to say, I have read plenty of motivational/personal development books, many of which have tremendously changed my life and increased my productivity and focus. 

There isn’t enough time to read all of my book recommendations by next year, so here are the most impactful yet easiest to implement life hacks I’ve found thus far. 

1. The 10X Rule – Grant Cardone, the author of “The 10X Rule” is a self-made multi-millionaire who has a very controversial approach to goal setting. Instead of setting “achievable” goals, Cardone says to set targets for yourself that are 10 times greater than you think you can actually achieve.

Now, before you judge and click away, let me explain. If you 10X your goals, it will force you to take massive action that is 10X the amount of action you would have taken otherwise. You will also be forced to get more creative and resourceful in your efforts. 

Cardone argues that most people fall short of their goals because they greatly underestimate the amount of effort it will take to achieve it. I don’t know about you but I would rather fall slightly short of achieving a 10X goal than to fall short of a small insignificant one. And just imagine if you actually achieve it!

2. The One Thing – Gary Keller, author of “The One Thing”, teaches that extraordinary success is determined by how narrow you can make your focus. It strictly advises against the “Jack of all trades” mentality. Focusing on one thing will give you the most results in the shortest time possible. 

After reading this book, I personally decided to focus my business on one narrow thing: sexy and sophisticated luxury swimwear. By narrowing my focus, I was able to perfect my craft and get much further than when I was designing everything for everybody. When you narrow your focus, it will also be clear what tasks and projects you should pass on.  

When planning tasks ask yourself “What’s the ONE thing I can do, such that by doing it everything else will become easier or unnecessary?” This will give you a compass as to what activities you should be focusing on to quickly get the results you desire.

3. The 5 Second Rule – This hack is the ultimate procrastination killer! In the book “The 5 Second Rule”, the author - Mel Robins discusses how she stumbled across this simple technique that actually got her up and out of the bed on time! This may seem like a small feat but she found it could be applied to any area of her life where she needed to stop procrastinating and take action.

Here is how it works: the moment you have the impulse to act on a goal, count down from 5. When you reach 1, physically move towards doing it, like a rocket launch! This leaves no time for fear to set in, no time for your brain to talk you out of it, and no time to even realize that you don’t feel like doing it.

4. Eat that frog – “Eat a live frog first thing in the morning and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day” – Mark Twain. The book “Eat That Frog” by Brian Tracy stems from this very philosophy.

The biggest takeaway from this book is to do the hardest and ugliest, but highly necessary tasks first before anything else. This will ensure that the things that will have the biggest impact in achieving your goals actually get done. BONUS - Use the ABCDE Method to determine what frog should be eaten first.

5. The Power of Now- This is going to be one of the most important life hacks thus far because it deals with your mindset and the internal dialog you have with yourself. Everyone who makes a goal or resolution will inevitably slip-up in their journey. Most people will use this as an excuse to permanently backslide back into old habits.

"The Power of Now” by Eckhart Tolle stresses that no matter what has happened in the past, it does not define you or who you will be right now. If you slipped up and ate the doughnut someone brought in for the office, it's okay. You can redeem yourself by making a healthier choice at lunch. Every minute you spend worrying about the future or regretting the past is a minute wasted. “Make NOW the primary focus of your life.” – Eckhart Tolle.

Here is how to practically use all these hacks to make your new year’s resolution’s failproof.  Firstly, take your new year’s resolution and 10X it because you are thinking too small! Next, ask yourself, "What is the one thing I can do that will make achieving my new year’s resolution easier or unnecessary?" Once you have the answer, use the 5 second rule to stop procrastinating and eat that frog. Lastly, go easy on yourself. You can’t change what you did in the past but you can surely be crushing it right now!