Ask anyone who visits a fitness center often and they'll tell you: January is one of the busiest months of the year. Why? Because multitudes commit to improving their health as part of the annual New Year's resolution ritual. But guess what? By the time February rolls around, the crowds have all but evaporated from fitness centers.

I'm not a big New Year's resolution kind of guy because I believe having goals and aspirations is a year-round activity -- something you focus on throughout your life. Still, I realize the start of a new calendar year does put many people into a fresh-start, I'm-going-to-make-this-year- better frame of mind. And that's a good thing, especially if you can transform that attitude into an ongoing purpose.

So, with the sights and sounds of confetti, Times Square, Dick Clark and "Auld Lang Syne" still fresh in your mind, here are some helpful resolution and goal-setting links with a highlight from each one:

7 Steps to Powerful Written Goals
http://www.topachievement.com/goalsetting.html

"Write your goal in the positive instead of the negative. Work for what you want, not for what you want to leave behind. Part of the reason why we write down and examine our goals is to create a set of instructions for our subconscious mind to carry out. Your subconscious mind is a very efficient tool. It cannot determine right from wrong and it does not judge. The more positive instructions you give it, the more positive results you will get."

Goal-Setting Tips and Traps for the New Year
http://click.topica.com/maaaKKCaaU8vUa4zL9Bb/

"Expand your vision of what's possible. I am often surprised by the limited vision people have for themselves, their careers or their businesses. Many have given up on themselves. They see themselves as their resumes -- as what they have done in the past. Surround yourself with creative minds and big thinkers. Don't settle. You're too important."

Personal Goal Setting - Planning to Live Your Life Your Way
http://www.mindtools.com/page6.html

"Set performance goals, not outcome goals. Take care to set goals over which you have as much control as possible. There is nothing more dispiriting than failing to achieve a personal goal for reasons beyond your control. These could be bad business environments, poor judging, bad weather, injury or just plain bad luck. If you base your goals on personal performance, then you can keep control over the achievement of your goals and draw satisfaction from them."

The 10 Commandments of Goal Setting
http://click.topica.com/maaaKKCaaU8vWa4zL9Bb/

"Thou shall be decisive. Success is a choice. You must decide what you want, why you want it and how you plan to achieve it. No one else can, will or should do that for you."

Setting Goals for the New Year
http://www.actnews.com/Articles/1997/97-01/setgoals.htm

"The most important part of the planning process is to write your goals down on paper so that you can see them. It shows that you are committed to accomplishing these goals, and by putting them down on paper, it gives you a point of reference. Then at any time you can compare your progress with your original action plan."

The Top 10 Best Ideas for Setting Goals
http://www.topachievement.com/hiltonjohnson.html

"Begin with the end in mind. Tom Watson, the founder of IBM, was once asked to explain what he attributed the phenomenal success of his company to. He said it was three things: First, he created a clear image in his mind of what he wanted his company to look like when it was done. Second, he asked himself how such a company would have to act on a day-to-day basis. Then he began to act that way."

Check out these links. Search your soul. Determine your purpose and priorities for the coming year. Make plans ... and start acting on them. And don't stop!

-Bob

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