Which is better? Setting goals or Making Resolutions?

By | January 7, 2014
0 Comment

It’s the New Year! Which is better: Setting goals or making resolutions?

I personally find it is more beneficial to set goals than to make resolutions. Probably because everybody knows when they make a resolution, they are leaving the door open, just a crack, to fizzle out shortly after they get started.

Somehow to me, a resolution doesn’t carry the impact that a goal does. I don’t feel the same long-term commitment to a resolution that I feel toward a goal. Over the past years, I have made many resolutions in my life – to exercise more, to eat properly, and yes, to practice the guitar more! What always happens with that is I end up making excuses to put off the exercise until tomorrow because I am too sore from yesterday, rationalize eating whatever I want because I will work it off with the exercise I am doing tomorrow, and practice? Well, I already know how to play the guitar, so what’s one more day, right?

Now goals are different. If you set a goal that you are going to learn to play a particular piece of music by a certain date, it gives you something to strive for. If you are struggling to learn a new technique, only practice will get you there. But sometimes it is hard to make yourself practice. Setting a goal that you are going to learn that technique, and then setting a “due date” may help keep you focused and driven to succeed. Working for your personal best, can be a fun motivator to move you ahead in your guitar playing.

Sometimes goals and resolutions can work together. Maybe you already made a resolution that you are going to learn to play the guitar this year. Cool! Now set some goals for what you want to accomplish. To do that, you will have to identify what you really, really want to get out of playing the guitar.

This may be the most important reason to set goals instead of resolutions. Resolutions are too general. Goals are specific Do you want to play acoustic guitar? Classical guitar? What kind of music do you want to play on the guitar? Why do you even want to learn? Do you want to play for your own enjoyment, or are you an entertainer at heart? Whatever your answer, goals will help you keep the resolution!

Gail Lees
Latest posts by Gail Lees (see all)