Take the STING out
Emmett says her STING action plan can lay out a strategy for success. She says she uses the acronym STING as a reminder of how easy it can be to stick to your resolve.Step one:
S- Select one thing you have been planning to change.
T- Time Yourself. “One hour a week is an amazing amount of time,” Emmett says. “After you put in four to five hours you are rolling. Nobody is going to give us time. Set a kitchen timer or stop watch and give yourself a full hour to concentrate on your project. Everybody can find an hour a week for their wildest dream. My wildest dream was to write a book. After the fourth week, I was so excited that I was able to make time.”
I- Ignore everything else. Emmett says it used to be that she would start 15 things and by the end of the day she finished nothing until she concentrated on one thing at a time.
N- No breaks. Emmett says before she learned how to stick to her plans, she could take a two-hour job and make it last 15 months. No more, she says, because of her hard-won focus.
Finally, G- Give yourself a reward. A reward will push you to do it for the long haul, Emmett says.
For Rochelle Rice, owner of In Fitness and In Health, a fitness club for women, 2006 was the year to lighten her life. “I left a bad relationship that wasn't powerful or empowering, and closed my business to reshape it for the new year.” This year her resolution is to ramp up her business again. She wants to write another fitness book, focus on getting more people fit and healthy, as well as to increase her speaking engagements on the subject. She calls her 2007 New Year’s resolution, Project Me.
Which is right in line with the Life/AOL Coaches poll that says “me time” is at the top of the list for reducing stress in 2007.
1. Did you make a resolution at the beginning of 2006?
Yes 52%
No 48%
2. Do you plan to make a new year’s resolution for 2007?
Yes 81%
No 19%
3. What’s your number-one goal for ’07?
Lose weight 31%
Maintain a healthier lifestyle 19%
Improve my relationship/romantic life 12%
Get organized 8%
Earn more money 8%
I’m not making a resolution 7%
Focus on spirituality 5%
Start a new career 4%
Spend more time with family 2%
Make home improvements 1%
Try a new hobby 1%
Volunteer 1%
4. Is one of your resolutions to earn more money?
Yes 68%
No 32%
5. How do you plan to do that?
Miscellaneous 34%
Get a new job 19%
Find a new career path 14%
Ask for a raise/promotion 9%
Play the lottery 9%
Start own business 8%
Get a second job 7%
6. What household chore do you want to tackle?
File or toss out old paperwork 41%
Clean out the garage 21%
Bring old clothes to Goodwill 20%
Organize family photos 18%
7. Would you like to have more sex in the new year? If so, how often?
One to two times a week 49%
Every day 23%
One to two times a month 15%
At least on major holidays and anniversaries 14%
8. What negative emotion would you like to swear off for good?
Fear 28%
Anger 26%
Regret 21%
Guilt 14%
Envy 11%
9. What do you plan to do more of to help you release stress?
More “me” time 33%
Prayer/meditation 29%
Getting together with friends/family more often 21%
Yoga 17%
10. How long do you think you’ll keep your resolution?
I’ll never break my resolution 33%
One year 29%
One month 24%
One week 8%
One day 6%
