Instead of waiting til Jan 1, why not start anew today! The Jewish New Year Holiday, Rosh Hashanah, goes from the evening of September 16th, 2012 through September 18th, 2012. Rosh Hashanah is the day “we wake ourselves up to becoming the person we most want to be.”
The following post is an excerpt by Rabbi Shmuel Herzfeld:
“Here are three steps to making a successful resolution:
The first step is to make a resolution that we can succeed in. When we make a resolution, we will have greater chance for success if it is a limited and concrete resolution.
Step two: When making a resolution and following through on that resolution, don’t expect immediate gratification. The key is to never let our personal feelings of pleasure interfere with our commitment to our resolution. So step two to a successful resolution is to not confuse how we feel with what is our ultimate goal as such a mistake will lessen our commitment and our dedication.
The third step in making a successful resolution is to never doubt one’s own ability to be successful. Many of us fail in our goals because we think we just can’t do it. We think it is beyond us. Too hard. We give up. Rosh Hashanah is a reminder that we are great, and we have the ability to succeed.
So these are three steps to help make our resolutions a success:
1) make a specific and limited resolution
2) don’t confuse our momentary enjoyment with the goal of the resolution
3) don’t ever doubt our ability to follow through and successfully complete the resolution.
Here is a bonus hint: Resolutions are more likely to succeed when they are publicly shared and when there is support from friends.”
