Resolving Resolutions

By McKenna Keglovits

I have been studying martial arts for around 13 years of my life. Martial arts has taught me many important lessons about hard work, respect, and goal setting. One of the things we learn while training and testing for our black belts is how to effectively and efficiently set a goal with the 5 Steps to Mastery. The outline we were given to follow was, set a goal, have a plan, take consistent action, change if it isn't working, and practice, practice, practice. We would implement this regiment into our training and it showed great progress and results.

Now that I have been studying for so long and have used this method to achieve my 3rd degree black belt, I have been looking for all of the other ways I can implement this strategy into my every day life.

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As the new year has begun, the term "New Year's Resolutions" is being discussed again. Its a term that has been used for years. The idea even dates back to over 4,000 years ago being used by the Ancient Babylonians who would reassert their allegiance to their king during their new year festival. In more recent times, the term has become to be what we know it as, adapted from Christianity as a way to reflect on past mistakes and better yourself.

The idea has become a sort of running joke online. There are groups of people who take their resolutions very seriously and commit themselves to bettering themselves all year long. However, a majority of people forget about, or give up on their resolutions along the way. The more that comes up about this issue, the more theories arise. For instance, if someone has never gone to the gym in their life, and their goal is to go to gym every day, the goal may feel overwhelming. It is possible that they may be able to achieve the goal right away, but consistency is key. A more realistic goal may be to go to the gym 2-3 times a week. The more constant you are with the goal, the easier it will be to increase the frequency. That plan includes 3 of the 5 Steps to Mastery, set a goal, have a plan, and take consistent action. If it seems like its getting harder to reach the goal, the next step is to change if it isn't working. That doesn't mean you should give up on your goal all together. Say you started out with the goal to go to the gym every day. You made your plan to go every morning, and then began to put your plan into action. If then, work or school started to get in the way, or the drive to go began to wear down, the next step is to make a change. Change the amount of days you're going, or the types of workouts, or the gym you are working out in. Once you've created a routine you are happy with, its time to practice, practice, practice. A common saying is "practice makes perfect". Sometimes the idea of perfection can be daunting, rather consider saying "practice makes progress". Keep making progress on your goals until your goals become habits.

Adapting the 5 Steps to Mastery into goal setting can be a game changer when it comes to setting a New Year's resolution. Many of the methods we are taught in martial arts make a strong impact on your life as long as they are applied in an effective way. Its a reliable method that wont let you down as long as you don't decide to give it up.

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Sources:

“The History of New Year’s Resolutions.” History.Com, A&E Television Networks, 28 May 2025, www.history.com/articles/the-history-of-new-years-resolutions.