Tag: new-year-resolution

Every year we sit down and think about what our New Year’s resolution is going to be.  And every year it mostly revolves one way or another to be something that changes us to make us better. We make resolutions that are anything from losing weight or quitting smoking to spending more time with our families or finding a new job. The problem is that most of us who make a resolution abandon it within the first three months. We tend to get distracted, lose focus or decide that it is just too hard to accomplish our goal.  The latter tends to flow from a place where we are not confident in our abilities to get the goal accomplished.

Make a Pros and Cons list 

Think for a minute about wanting to quit smoking.  When you think about it, the first response you have is that you can do it.  You make a list of things you can try whether it is quitting cold turkey, using the patches, exercise, online support groups, or going to see a doctor for the pills that help you stop.   You make a pros and cons list of why it is important for you to stop. 

The pros include feeling better, getting healthy, or saving money. The cons include getting lung cancer, wasting money, or you can’t run a quarter of a mile without feeling like your lungs are going to burst out of your chest.  All of these options, pros, and cons just pile up in your mind to reinforce that you can do it, you can quit smoking. 

An alternative to smoking could be getting involved with a new hobby and not having time to think about your vice. Instead of smoking a cigarette or two, you can grow plants indoors by using grow tents. Plants require a lot of time and attention from you and this will prove an effective way to overcome cigarette cravings. 

The Risk of Giving Up

Three months later your car breaks down, you lose your job, or you go through a bad breakup.  Here come the triggers.  Now you are stressed out or depressed.  The first thing you reach for is a cigarette, or maybe you think that smoking a cigar or a vape is better so you go that route.  You don’t even realize at the time that you are inhaling nicotine regardless of how you are inhaling it.  You just think that because you are just needing a little hit if you don’t pick up the cigarette that you are so used to, that it will not affect your goal.  

However, the end result is you are right back where you started on the first day of the new year and you have broken your resolution.  Now most people at this point, just say they just proved that they can’t do it, so they lay down their resolution and say maybe they will be stronger next year.  But what if you had help?  What if there was a training workshop that could help you from the beginning of the idea of what resolution you were going to make?  I know you are thinking to yourself that there is nothing like that.  But there is.  It’s called assertiveness training.

Join a Workshop that Can Help 

The definition of assertiveness training is a method of training individuals to act in a bold self-confident manner; is a form of behavior therapy designed to help people empower themselves.The assertiveness training workshops have been around since the women’s movement of the 1970s that dealt with mental health and personal growth groups.  It grew out of the realization that many women in the movement were hindering themselves by their lack of ability to be assertive. Today’s assertiveness training workshops are used as part of communication training for such programs as substance abuse treatment, social skills training, vocational programs, and responding to harassment. 

The purpose is to teach people to identify and act on their desires, needs, and opinions while remaining respectful of others. There is a broad approach to the training that can be used for different personal, academic, health care, and work situations.  Some of the areas that the training helps include conflict resolution, realistic goal setting, and stress management.  It also helps with our personal choices that include, but are not limited to, quitting the use of drugs and alcohol, and self-care. In addition to that, you could start attending Job Training Courses which provide you with career development, enrich your mind, and motivate you to go on with your goals instead of giving up. 

These go right in line with our example of our New Year’s resolution to quit smoking along with any number of resolutions you want to set for yourself this year. Add an assertiveness training workshop to your resolution and by the end of the year, mark that goal as accomplished.

About The Author

Freya is a Math teacher, Yoga enthusiast, and a beloved mother of three lovely daughters. She is always looking for ways to grow and help others around her thrive through self-learning, meditation, and physical fitness. When she is not teaching or spending time with her family, Freya regularly writes on topics related to self-improvement and women empowerment.