Ever wonder how you can make New Year’s Resolutions and stick with them?

Have you ever had a resolution that you actually kept for more than a month? (Come on, be honest!) Do you ever wonder why we’re all so obsessed with making New Year’s Resolutions? The reason is this: There’s actually a shift in our internal guidance system as the year changes. It’s not just a nutty tradition – there’s a real honest-to-goodness reason that we “take stock” of ourselves at the beginning of a New Year.

Are you ready for this “outside of the box” technique for figuring out the best way to make your resolutions sizzle?

Here’s where using just a little Numerology comes in handy.

This is a great tool for seeing where you’ve been in 2012 and then get a glimpse of what 2013 might bring for you. In numerology, we experience what are called Personal Year Cycles. A Personal Year Cycle is a 9-year long cycle. Depending on where you are in your cycle, your Personal Year Number could be a 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, or a 9. After 9, you will cycle back to 1 again. Each Personal Year Number has different qualities to it and when you know the basics, you can set your resolutions to fit with the purpose of your year rather than clashing against it.

CALCULATE YOUR CURRENT PERSONAL YEAR

Add together your birth month and day with the CURRENT YEAR.

Example: If your birthday is September 29, you would calculate this way

9/29/2012 = 9 + 2 + 9 + 2 + 0 + 1 + 2 = 25

In Numerology, you always digit down to a 1-digit number. So keep adding.

2 + 5 = 7

YOU’RE CURRENTLY IN A 7 PERSONAL YEAR

Next year (2013), you’ll be in an “8” Personal Year

So how does this work? Look at the chart below to see what each year brings to you.

Think of it this way. Your Personal Years are like a Theme Party. When you know the theme, you can know what to expect – and you can choose your costume accordingly!

Abbreviated Definitions – Themes to Remember

1 Personal Year: Building confidence and leadership, initiation, new beginnings, action
2 Personal Year: Slow and deliberate, “us” rather than “I,” emotionally sensitive
3 Personal Year: Creative and fun, communicative, “getting out there”
4 Personal Year: Serious and hard-working, setting foundations, healing family wounds
5 Personal Year: Frenetic and fast-paced, filled with adventure, time for change
6 Personal Year: Nurturing of self and others, marriage and divorce, heightened responsibility
7 Personal Year: Contemplative and introspective, spiritual, learning
8 Personal Year: Money and personal power, active and hardworking, abundance/scarcity
9 Personal Year: Letting go and falling away, major transitions, loss, and resilience

So the question is: So what? How do I use this? Here’s how.

Say you’re finishing that 7 Personal Year. You’ve been looking for a new job and you’re devastated that you haven’t secured something decent this year. So you’ve been taking some classes and studying a lot – you’ve even gotten therapy because this has been so hard. So if you know your numerology and realize that self-evaluation has been the purpose of 2012 (the 7 year is all about introspection and study), then you can see why things have felt so excruciatingly slow and frustrating. You can also give yourself permission to really focus on your studies and get the most out of them during the year.

Now, in 2013, you’re heading into your “8” year. This is the break-out year for you with your sense of personal power and with your finances. This is the year that you’ll get that new job. It’s the year where work and career are front and center. These are simplified examples, yet you can see how this might operate.

The key is this: Why not make resolutions based on your “theme” rather than on some random or off-the-wall resolution?

Say you’re coming up to your 1 Personal Year. This year’s theme is built around action, hard work, new beginnings, and building confidence. Instead of: “I want to lose 35 pounds,” how about: “I want to build my self-confidence.” The thing is, losing weight can certainly be a major component to “building self confidence,” yet you’ll have to do some other smaller shifts in tandem, which will boost your likelihood of actually changing your life habits substantially enough to succeed with losing 35 pounds.

You can take “smaller bites” (pardon the pun!) in order to make changes that last. Like: “Join the hiking club.” This will boost self confidence and encourage weight loss. Like: “Take a healthy cooking class.” This will boost self confidence and encourage weight loss. Like: “Get out of my abusive relationship.” That will boost self confidence and encourage weight loss. See how it might work? Focus on the over-all theme (building self confidence) rather than the singular focus of “losing 35 pounds.” Your chances of success will skyrocket!

The real reason our regular resolutions fizzle is because: 1) we’re often working against the “purpose” of our year and 2) our resolutions aren’t actually connected to our real, day-to-day existence. If you want to lose 35 pounds, you’re going to have to change your habits for the long haul! If you expect the rest of your life to remain exactly the same and lose the weight, you’re in for frustration and disappointment – and probably very little weight loss, if not weight gain because of the stress you’re putting yourself through.

Take some time to analyze this year. Take some time to think about what’s going on in your life right now, and then what you might like to see happen in the coming year. Start writing down your intentions as you feel they might align with the theme of the upcoming year.

For instance, if you’re heading into a 3 year in 2013, you should know that the theme for the year is fun, joy, high energy, and creative self expression. What can you plan that will take advantage of the energy of creative self expression and communication?

Have you been feeling the need to start networking with your business a bit more consistently? This is a great year to set that up and get out there! Feeling like your communication skills need a little overhaul? This is a great year for therapy, or a public speaking class, or any kind of artistic expression. If you’re focused on developing your authentic emotions and communication skills this year, you can achieve all kinds of resolutions. Instead of : “Make more money,” try: “Going to two networking events a month.” See how manageable the second resolution feels? In fact, it even seems fun! Where at the get-go, the first one feels heavy and desperate (and ultimately unattainable).

When you can see the “theme” for the year, you can plan around it and optimize the productivity, happiness, and satisfaction you’ll get from the year.

Taking smaller steps that are inviting rather than scary, manageable rather than overwhelming, and fun rather than a pain in the you-know-what, will allow you to feel successful with your resolutions rather than like a dismal failure. And when we feel a sense of success, we’re much more likely to continue to make the changes we want to make. No one leaps from point A to point G in one swoop, so why do you think you should? Look to your numbers as your “outside of the box” resolution guide!

With the wisdom you get by knowing your numbers, you might find yourself making “real-solutions” rather than resolutions.