One of the best moments of setting a Resolution is the initial feeling you get at setting the goal itself and telling others what your plan is to complete your new resolution. There is a sense of satisfaction and completeness as you share your plans, but in truth, this feeling is often the first step towards failure. Shortly after the resolution will be forgotten or, at best, remembered briefly and quickly shoved away into one's mind to never be seen from until the next year when the motivation to have a resolution returns.
There are multiple ways to get around the issue of losing motivation to accomplish your goals. The first is to write down your resolution. Perhaps you want to finally paint a full 2000pt army, place in the top ten in a large event, or even plan to lose twenty pounds. No matter what the goal is you should write it down. Perhaps you put it on your refrigerator or write it down in your hobby journal so every once in a while you see that goal and are reminded of what you are chasing that year.
One of the other ways to not lose that initial motivation is to simply not tell anyone what your resolution is for the year. You still need to write it down for yourself, but often people feel accomplished by simply setting a resolution and by telling people what they are will have enough sense of accomplishment that motivation flees. Keep in mind this isn't necessarily the case for everyone, but taking the time to evaluate this might go a long way in completing your resolution. After all, you are setting resolutions to better yourself and if the goal is about you then there really isn't much need to tell others what it is if it can hurt your chances at completing your goal.
The other major downfall of most New Year Resolutions is when people set goals that are not within the scope of what they can realistically accomplish. Is it possible to lose fifty pounds this year if you are overweight? Sure, but it isn't realistic for everyone. Is it possible to paint five hundred models this year? Once again it is possible, but for a lot of hobbyists, it isn't realistic. It is perfectly fine and very healthy to have lofty goals that might stretch out for a few years, but you need to set a resolution that you can realistically achieve within the year. The goal needs to be a challenge, but not so far out of reach you begin to feel it is impossible when you go after it.
If you do have a lofty goal or dream you are chasing then set a resolution to help you towards that dream and let the resolution feed into that bigger goal. If you only average painting thirty models in a year then instead of a resolution to paint five hundred aim for doubling your last year instead. In a few years if you keep setting similar resolutions then it is likely five hundred models in a year is realistic for you to accomplish. Avoid going after massive leaps just because it sounds impressive and it will often lead to failure, potentially leading to you doing even less than the prior year.
Resolutions are just like any other goal you set, but they are tied to the New Year Holiday. Try to treat them as any other goal as opposed to a tradition simply before the year is ending. If you crush the resolution early then set another one! If you have a few setbacks don't just give up and let the resolution sit until next year. Instead, keep after it and consider it an early start for next year's resolution.
This year The New year falls in the middle of the week and a lot of people will go on a diet for their resolution. However, they will likely say "You cannot start a diet in the middle of the week." and decide to start it the following Monday, but that Monday never comes as if you push it off once you will keep pushing it off. It is the same with wanting to paint a full army as your Hobby Resolution so do not find a reason to put it off. I would encourage all of you to have a resolution but start it today. Get after your resolution immediately and before you know it you will be adding it to your list of accomplishments.
Happy New Year and Happy Hobbying!
Chuck Moore