GIVE YOUR NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTIONS A FIGHTING CHANCE IN 2011

December 21, 2010 - Remember January 1, 2010? That was the day we made the New Year's resolutions we will finish this year so infamously breaking.

Americans want their lives to be better and we believe that "better" is within our grasp. It's not that we don't know how to stick to our resolutions, it's that we don't know how to make resolutions that stick to us-and our kids. According to Marlene Gonzalez, a life coach from Chicago, "What we need is to look deep inside, really know who we are and what we want out of life, and [then] put plans together."

It turns out that making really sticky New Year's Resolutions is a two-step process: First you reflect on your deeply held beliefs, values, and strengths; and then you craft resolutions that support and promote them.

EduGuide, a nonprofit organization located in Lansing, Michigan, has developed an online community that helps people discover and then "fine tune" their goals or resolutions. Goals, such as Find Out What Really Matters to Me, Find Out What I'm Good At, Help My Kid Identify His or Her Strengths are composed of simple, measurable, and repeatable steps that members sign up to follow. According to Community Support Coordinator, Jenny Holliday, "We make setting goals for students and parents a little easier by offering specific 'to do's instead of vague general advice. As a parent, I know I need step-by-step help when I'm trying to motivate my child to work on a goal."

Once they are ready to craft their resolutions EduGuide's site helps its members Choose a Meaningful Goal, Set Goals I Can Achieve, and Use Affirmations and Visualization to Achieve My Goals.

Once members adopt a goal they can invite others to help support them. They can also share their struggles and triumphs with other community members who are working on the same goal.

Working with schools and other nonprofits, EduGuide provides the publications, programs, and online tools families need to take the steps that predict success from crib through college. Foundations like Google, Kresge, C.S. Mott and others have funded EduGuide research, programs, and services to help more than 1,000,000 people annually.

Our vision is a society where all children reach their full potential regardless of where they live or how much their family earns.
EduGuide has been recognized for Distinguished Achievement by the School Public Relations Association, the Education Publishers Association and participated in a televised dialogue with the U.S. Secretary of Education.