Change starts with a C, and C is for Commitment. You have written out a new goal. Why is it important to you? How will it make a positive change in your life? What's it going to take to achieve the goal? It's going to take some changes; what are they? Is the benefit to your life worth the price you're going to pay?

These are important questions for you to think about and resolve. The answers are going to mean that the goal is worth the cost to you, or it's not. If it is, you will be able to commit to it. If it's not, you won't.

That sounds pretty harsh, doesn't it? Well I'm not trying to throw cold water on that flame that's beginning to burn in you. I want to help you fan the flame and make it burn brightly!

Let's take a look at your goal. Is it going to take a big change in your life to achieve it? If not, the commitment won't be as hard to make. If the goal requires a bigger change, the commitment must be bigger too.

If you are having a hard time committing to the goal, you really need to examine why the goal is important to you in the first place. Why do you want it? What's the benefit to you and the people around you? Is it something that would be nice to have and be a short-lived benefit, or is it a "Biggy"? It may be big, or it may be small. Either way you need to see and really understand what the benefit would be and decide that it's worth it.

So, you've decided what the benefit is. That's clear in your mind, and you can visualize it. It really is important, but you aren't sure about the price, and I'm not talking about money. I'm talking about the time and effort you're going to invest to achieve the goal.

Before you decide the price is too high, you might want to do more research into what it's going to take to succeed. A couple other letters in the word change are going to help you here. H stands for help; A stands for action.

Before you decide you cannot make the commitment, you need to have a clear understanding of what actions you will need to take. You might be seeing the challenge as something much bigger than it really is. This is a good time to enlist the help of someone who has more knowledge or experience than you have. It could well be that there are paths to the goal that you aren't even aware of. It could well be easier than you think.

Remember, commitment is just one letter out of the six! You can't really be ready to make the commitment until you have a good understanding of the challenge. What actions will really be necessary? How much help can you get along the way? Once you understand those things better you will be much more ready to make the commitment.

So, get a clear picture in your mind of what you're going to achieve and what life is going to be like when you're done. Be sure the actions you're planning to take are the most efficient ways to reach the goal. Once that's clear, you can weigh the benefit against the cost. If the goal is the right one for you, you will make the commitment!