Like so many New Years before, this is the time to set goals, start fresh and get back on the wagon. Wipe off the sludge and indulgence of the holidays and get going with the person you really want to be. Right? And yet, it’s easy to forget our resolutions, or get discouraged with them as January comes and goes and life returns to the every day normal. All those goals we set in our head, possibly even wrote down, eventually prove to be a little more difficult than they seemed in our minds as we planned them.

If you want to be successful this year, try these strategies:

1. Set some goals

That is the first step, making a conscious effort. Goals are really important to have in your life. They push you to be more and do more than you would if you just floated along, following the motions of your day to day life. Start by setting goals, but make sure you do it the correct way to be successful.

2. Don’t give up

I was talking to my husband about goal setting and he said the first goal you should set is to not give up. You know, he’s right. Here’s the reality–you will fail, at least sometimes. There will be days when you don’t reach your goal.

Don’t quit because you weren’t perfect one day, one week or one month. Keep trying. Start again, start smaller, most importantly, don’t get discouraged, don’t stop!

3. Start small

The smaller your goal is, the more likely you are to achieve it. And you know what, if you complete 100 small goals, you have suddenly reached a big goal. Don’t go out and buy a new exercise machine, start by going on a walk. Don’t jump in to a big new endeavor, slowly wade in, get your feet wet, and then the next day get your legs wet until you are all in and have achieved your goal.

4. Be able to give yourself a “yes” or “no” answer

Make your goal something that is easy to determine if you have achieved. Don’t use abstract goals such as “Be kind.” Change that and make it something you can measure, such as “Say ‘hi’ to five people today.” You can’t really measure if you were kind, but think of the behavior that is required to achieve your ultimate goal, break it down into small pieces of what behavior is required so that you will be able to clearly assess your progress.

5. Continually set new goals

Because you are setting small goals, it’s not enough to set goals once a year. Start the year setting small goals, revisit those goals each day, each week and each month. As you have mastered one of your small, doable goals, start again, with another small goal that is one step farther than where you initially started.

You will be amazed where you can go as you take a small step every day in the right direction.