It’s February 2015. We’ve purchased, partied, paid and permitted ourselves to indulge over the holidays – and maybe even beyond, with that golden ticket of the inner conversation, “It’s OK, I’ll…

– Go to the gym/yoga/run/etc.

– Go on a diet

– Be nicer to my spouse

– Clean the garage

– Work on myself … some time in the New Year.”

You know the drill. The statistics tell us that 40 percent of Americans make New Year’s resolutions. And only 8 percent of us achieve them. To be blunt, 60 percent of us don’t bother to set goals, and a third of us fail at those we make.

The health club industry tells us that sales increase by 35-50 percent in January and a full 80 percent of those memberships stop using them by the second week in February. The list goes on.

The impact of not making resolutions – or setting goals – is that you will likely be successful at achieving exactly what you plan for: not much at all. Setting unrealistic goals and not keeping them teaches us not to believe in ourselves. Our inner voice will simply not be believable

And, when we can’t trust ourselves, others cannot trust us either. We are not authentic, and people get it.

What to do? Not making resolutions or setting goals? Your competitors hope so.

Here’s what I’ve found that works:

Less is more! Make fewer resolutions, so you can manage them – and achieve them.

Get Real. Make your goals realistic. Stretch goals are great – as long as you are of the mind that getting 80 percent of your stretch is a great result, not failure. When you achieve realistic goals, you can always add to them.

Be Specific. Make a specific plan to achieve your goals. Not “I will get fit and join the gym.” Instead, pull out your calendar, and put times in for each week that you can – and will – keep.

Be the boss! Hold yourself accountable. Look at your goals each week, and tell yourself the truth about how well you’ve done.

Reward yourself. Resolutions and goals are ambitions. When you meet them, give yourself some sort of bonus: A night out without counting calories or points. That new toy you’ve wanted”

May 2015 be the most successful year of your life for you, your family and your business.

Set and achieve your goals. Over and over again! ?

Steve Garber is director of Third Level Ltd. Contact him at 561.752.5505 or email him at sgarber@thirdlevel.com.