It's that time of year where people feel obligated to "promise" to change.  Maybe lose weight.  Or be nicer to people.  Read more.  Save more.  Learn more.  Exercise more.  Smoke or drink less.  You name it - there is probably someone, somewhere who has made it into a New Year's resolution.

But HOW do you really boost your ability to achieve your goals and objectives? What can you do to help you attain what you are setting out to do?  How do you stack the cards in your favor to reach your goal and not abandon your resolutions?

Here are some of the takeaways that I have on this topic...and the "pearls" that I have seen recently on many different articles and posts about resolutions.  

• Be realistic.  Only set a small number (3-5) goals for yourself.  Too many will overwhelm you.  It's far better to have a small number of items that you successfully attain than a large list that becomes abandoned. 
• ...