As 2015 draws to a close, now is the time to decide how you can make 2016 your best year yet. A lot of people talk about new years resolutions, but few seem to keep them, so lets focus on goals instead!

First of all, you need to decide what you would like to achieve. For instance, you may want to learn something new or give something up. A better way of achieving the latter, is to put it in the positive sense. Rather than saying, 'i would like to give up chocolate', how about replacing this with 'I will become healthier'. The next step, would be to create a realistic plan, detailing how and when you will do this. For instance, you may decide to only eat chocolate every other month.

Try this step by step process:

1. What do you want to achieve? (in the positive)

2. When do you want to achieve it by?

3. How will you do this?

4. What will you gain from achieving this?

5. What will you lose?

If something comes up for number 5 (Notice any negative emotions here), you may need to do some more work on this. Assuming there is no great loss and that you feel positive about your goal, the next step is:

6. Imagine you have achieved your goal and notice how you feel. How will achieving this goal transform your life. At this point, you may think of some additional steps that need to be added to point 3.

Personally, i like to write down my goals and to create a to do list of steps, including dates. For me, this makes it all more tangible. The key, as always, is to notice any negative emotions that come up and to amend the plan, accordingly. A great example of this is a new business idea that i have. As i have a 3 month old baby, i have to be really careful when setting a realistic timeframe. Another thing to remember is that what is unrealistic for some may be totally realistic for you.

Now for the final step:

7. Share your goal with someone close to you who you trust and respect. This final step is very important, as this person will be waiting to see this achievement!