New Year’s Eve has come and gone. So have many of the New Year’s resolutions that many people have made, like not texting while driving, taking better care of your health, being nicer to the dog, spending more time with the kids (grandkids). New Year’s resolutions are notoriously ineffectual in making life changes, especially when it comes to an area that resists change such as personal health and well-being.

Instead of making (and breaking) New Year’s resolutions, consider these principles and imagine some ways that you might make them happen in your life. Don’t make big changes or choose hard-to-do options. Instead, think about the general principle, then imagine how that principle would play out in your life. Write down (helps crystallize thinking) one or two ways you would be willing to try for two weeks. If it works for you, continue to do it, or consider other options to achieve the same goal.