Sometimes it ‘s easier to work out what you don’t want than what you do want. If you’re having trouble setting goals and planning for next year you could try using the power of opposites.

Instead of getting stuck working out how to do better cast your mind back over this year and ask yourself “how can I repeat the failures of 2014?” This helps you identify the key steps to getting the results you don’t want. Then you turn the steps on their head and consider the opposite to get better results next year.

For example, if you have studied courses or listened to webinars but have made no progress, ask yourself how you could repeat that next year. You could decide there are three essential steps: 1. listen to webinars or purchase courses that will not help you where you currently are in your business, 2. take poor notes of the training, 3. take no action after completing the training. Now the correct steps are obvious and you can include them as targets to help you make better progress next year.

Instead of making a ‘to-do’ list, think of what did not go well this year and make a list of all the behaviours, patterns, and thinking you need to avoid if you want to reach your goals in 2015. This approach may seem negative, but if you see it as helping you make steps forward it should give you an incentive to work through it.

Once you have your list of actions to avoid, turn them about and list them as positive statements. Taking poor notes would become taking comprehensive notes, or expressing notes as action steps to encourage clarity and action.

To help you get started here’s a possible list of actions to avoid. If some of these resonate with you, you’re not alone. Some resonate with me too. Make a note of those you believe you should address next year and add any others you think of to your list.

• Too much time spent on writing blog and social media posts.
• Not staying accountable to someone.
• Not measuring results.
• Not having deadlines.
• Not regularly reminding yourself of your goals.
• Not reviewing your progress weekly.
• Not planning regularly or responding to the progress you are making.
• Saying yes to too many opportunities and distractions.
• Not being clear about the next acton to take, even when you’re not absolutely sure what it should be.

If your list seems too big to tackle decide which ones are most important and concentrate on correcting those in the new year before tackling any others.