We all know how busy life can get.
As the year goes on, our goals and desired habits can start to be forgotten.
An article in the Washington Post notes a study that found 50-70% of our everyday memory failures involve forgetting our intentions.
No wonder it’s challenging for us to keep our goals top of mind!
One method to combat this “forgetfulness” is to tie a physical object to your primary goal.
This is often referred to as a cue.
Two articles to dive deeper into this can be found here (research) and here (article).
The intention of the cue is that when you see the object it reminds you of the goal or habit.
My Perspective
I’m an advocate for having a physical object that reminds you of your goals.
I use this method annually with my word of the year.
The word is like an umbrella over goals in all areas of my life.
I look for things like a necklace with the word, a mug, a small object for my desk, etc.
These small items consistently remind me of my intentions for the year.
Along the way, those reminders regularly influence my decisions.
This keeps me on my path.
This year, my word is “Celebrate”.
Instead of getting the word printed on a charm like I usually do, I went for a symbol.
The bubbles will remind me to celebrate the moments, big and small, every day.
Your Turn
What one goal, intention, or habit would you like to keep front of mind this year?
How could you introduce a physical object as a reminder?
Will you keep the object with you all the time or will you place it in a spot where you need the trigger?