How to achieve your goals, even during a pandemic

By Sam Hook

The coronavirus pandemic has certainly thrown a spanner in the works when it comes to setting goals and planning for the future whether that’s for travel, work or personal ambitions, and we don’t know for sure what restrictions will be in place in the first few months of this year.

While it may be difficult to plan ahead, it’s still important to take time to decide what you’d like to achieve in 2021 to give you a sense of direction and purpose.Around 85% of people don’t set goals and on average 92% of New Years’ resolutions fail by January 15. Not only that, most people make the same resolutions ten times without success. If you set New Year’s resolutions or goals but don’t have much success, here are five science-backed strategies to help you to achieve them.

Strategy number 3: Have a contingency plan and be flexible

Make a contingency plan to allow for any setbacks or pandemic restrictions.  Thinking ahead and planning for problems will increase your chance of success.Lockdown has given people a taste for a simpler way of living and a YouGov survey showed that 91% of Brits do not want things to go back to normal – with 85% saying they hoped to see some of the personal or social changes they have experienced over recent months continue afterwards. With this in mind, there’s no rush to achieve new goals quickly. Obviously, timelines are required to achieve targets, but it’s important to be flexible and take into account that things might be slow-moving for a while. Being consistent over time and maintaining consistent routines is the key.

Strategy number 4: Update a friend, coach or mentor

The Society of Training and Development found that you have a 65% chance of completing a goal if you commit to someone.  On top of that, If you have a specific accountability appointment with another person, this can actually increase your chances of success by up to 95%.