Deal With Your 'Deeper Issues' In 2010

Come Friday, January 1, 2010, we’ll all be thinking of ways to put our new year’s resolutions into action. We’re so hopeful in January. Telling ourselves we’re really going to loose 30 pounds, eliminate all of our debt or find love. It’s terrible when by March we’re already discouraged by not sticking with our goals. While motivation and momentum are key, sometimes they’re not enough. There could be something deeper that’s blocking you from growth.

CNN.com recently posted a few good ways to stay focused on your goals for 2010. The one that stood out the most was “Examine Deeper Issues.”

“Examine deeper issues

Sometimes there are problems that need to be addressed before people can move forward with the change they want.

In some cases there are psychological impediments to making changes, Levine said. For example, some people fear failure so much that they unknowingly sabotage themselves. Self-esteem may also play a role — some people don’t feel they’re worthy of being taken care of, he said.

If you think that there are deeper issues preventing you from moving forward in your life in some way, consult a mental health professional.”

Sometimes these “deeper issues” like fear of success or failure or an inability to stand up to men or low self-esteem keep us from getting the promotions, leaving those no-good guys or even saving our money. We all have “issues” that need attention. As soon as we start recognizing them for what they are we can deal with them and move on to accomplishing our goals. Issues like being too hard on yourself may never go away, but at least you’ll be able to recognize when your acting negatively towards yourself and hopefully push through that behavior.

Maybe it’s time to add “exorcise my inner demons” to the top of our new year’s resolutions lists.