Tis the season for New Year's resolutions; the age-old tradition of promising ourselves to make a positive change throughout the year.

But how effective are New Year's resolutions? According to a survey of 15,000 respondents by time management experts Franklin Covey, only 23 per cent of New Year's resolutions are kept. The key reasons cited were distractions from doing too many other things and not being sufficiently committed to the resolution in the first place.

These aren't dissimilar to the reasons why some business leaders fail to achieve their commercial goals. And unfortunately the success rate isn't much better. A survey by Ernst & Young found that only 33% of strategic plans are actually executed.

New Year's resolutions and business goals are all about change. And change - whether it be minor or massive - can't happen without mindfully adjusting our day-to-day habits to allow for that change. As the old saying goes: "If you always do what you always did, you'll always get what you always got".

Your chances of success will greatly increase if you take the time to think through all the steps required to achieve your goal, have the discipline to make those steps a priority against other activities you do every day, and schedule them in your daily and weekly routine. Sounds too simple? Perhaps so, but unfortunately many people - and businesses - never get around to this important step.

If you have a goal you'd like to achieve...

• Write it down, making sure it's specific (who? what? where?); measurable (how much? how many?); attainable (realistic); relevant (aligned with your other goals) and time bound (by when?).
• Write down all the many personal and professional benefits of achieving this goal. This will help build your commitment to succeed.
• Write down all the steps required to achieve your goal, their associated deadlines and who needs to be involved.
• Schedule each of these steps in your diary, planner or calendar - whatever you use to organise yourself. Make them a priority and tick them off as you do them so you can track your progress and create momentum towards success.

Whatever your resolution(s) for the year ahead, I hope you have a happy, healthy and prosperous year!