Setting goals is a pretty standard start to the New Year throughout New York.
After all, it’s a time of looking ahead to new possibilities. This season is about reflecting on your life over a year. It only makes sense that you want to set goals and achieve more in the future.
How can CBT help you set and meet New Years’ goals?
But how do you ensure that you don’t fall into the trap of setting goals in January, only to abandon them in February?
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) in Suffolk County can be just what you need to set and achieve goals in the New Year.
1. Identify Your Goals
What were your successes this year? Where do you think you could improve? How do you want to stretch yourself and go for it?
Sometimes it’s hard to find clarity on what you really want; you might know what you think others expect, or what will “look good”, but what goals do you really want to set? Even if you have a concept of what you want to do, it helps to talk with someone to develop those concrete goals. Before the session, consider jotting down some ideas about what you want to work toward. Allow your mind to imagine and see what happens.
Participating in therapy with a counselor trained in CBT will help you to introspect, target important goals, and strive for them. Therapy gives you space to work with a trusted, expert therapist, with whom you can bounce ideas off of and brainstorm.
2. Use the SMART Method
CBT helps you make and stick to New Year’s resolutions with the SMART method. It stands for:
- Specific
- Measurable
- Achievable
- Realistic
- Timely
Why is this approach essential? Well, have you ever set a goal for yourself that was similar to, “I’m going to get better at playing the guitar!” That feat sounds tremendous and even inspirational, and yet, how are you going to make that happen? It’s not a specific, measurable, or timely goal.
With the SMART method, you can break down a big goal into smaller pieces that allow you to achieve your goal.
For example, you could say, “I want to get better at playing the guitar. So, I am going to attend guitar lessons with my music teacher three times a week for the next six months so that I can learn these songs.”
This goal sounds more specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and timely, doesn’t it?
3. Transform Negative Thought Patterns
Everyone has experienced negative thought patterns in their lives. These mental habits arise slowly and can become deeply ingrained, influencing us in ways we don’t always see until pointed out. Why does this happen? Mainly because you have had life experiences that reinforced that, for one reason or another, you were not capable or competent. But long-held personal beliefs aren’t always true, even if they feel true in the moment.
When it comes to knowing how to set and achieve goals in the New Year, an “I can’t do that” or “That’s impossible” mindset frequently exists. A CBT therapist can help you look at the thought patterns in your life that keep you from trying.
If you look back on your life, you will find plenty of examples of your capability and competency. Working with a CBT therapist will help you to identify those thought patterns and focus on them when you’re setting goals, to keep negative thoughts from holding you back.
Together, you can begin to shift that thinking towards a more positive and empowering mindset that will allow you to achieve your goals. You will be able to go from “I can’t do this,” to, “I can totally do this!”
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Cognitive Behavior Therapy at Suffolk DBT Can Help You Make, and Keep, Your New Year’s Resolutions
Everyone could use a little help from time-to-time, including when you want to set and achieve goals in the New Year. A therapist who understands cognitive behavioral therapy will be able to work with you to help you get there.
The CBT therapists at Suffolk DBT are here to support you, helping you clarify and achieve your goals. Please reach out to today or visit our page on cognitive behavioral therapy to learn more.
Frequently Asked Questions about Cognitive Behavior Therapy
What mental health conditions can CBT help with?
Cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) can be used as a supportive therapy to help with many conditions, including anxiety, depression, eating disorders, OCD, and some mood disorders. It is one of the most common therapeutic approaches used by counselors and mental health professionals, and can be used in addition to many types of therapy, including Exposure and Ritual Prevention (ExRP) therapy and Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT).
What’s the difference between CBT and DBT?
CBT helps people to address unhelpful thought patterns, behaviors and beliefs through confrontation and replacement with other thoughts, behaviors, or beliefs.
DBT helps people manage overwhelming emotions by changing their behaviors and adjusting their mindset through a structured approach incorporating mindfulness, emotional regulation, distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness.
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Suffolk DBT proudly provides quality dialectical behavior therapy, a form of cognitive behavioral therapy, at their offices in Manhattan and Long Island, New York and online. Their experienced therapists specialize in serving teens, children, adults, and college students struggling with depression, borderline personality disorder, eating disorders, and self-harm. Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) skills and treatment can help you or your kids to manage emotions and work through life’s challenges. Suffolk DBT Manhattan and Long Island offer a free screening call so you can get started right away.