Service makes it stick.
Today, I’m sharing Step 4 in my GENIUS Approach to Resolutions: Impact.
Impact is where your resolutions stop being performative and start becoming purposeful.
The fact is… if a goal doesn’t mean anything, it won’t last.
You can want it. You can even repeat it for the entire month of January. But when life gets busy, when motivation dips, when it’s inconvenient, the first thing to go is the thing that feels more meaningless than other things in your life.
Impact (and a real commitment to service) makes your goals meaningful, in the best way.
I’ve talked about service before, and how it fits directly into the definition of purpose. In my opinion, you can’t really separate the two. Purpose isn’t just what lights you up. Purpose is what you’re willing to show up for, even when it’s hard, because it serves something bigger than just yourself.
That’s the definition of impact. And it’s what makes our goals really stick.
Think about it.
Do you have a goal you keep dropping? (Be honest!)
Maybe this is even the third or fourth year you’ve tried to put it back on your resolutions list.
Now ask yourself this: is the goal you keep dropping actually connected to anything beyond your own hope or desire?
Read that again, and really think about it. What’s your honest answer?
When you connect a goal to service beyond your day-to-day life, you give your brain a reason to stay committed. And I don’t mean “service” as in big, grand gestures of philanthropy. (If you can, great.)
Most impactful change happens through small, consistent, service-driven actions.
It may start with a personal mission, but the more a goal improves you, steadies you, and strengthens the way you show up, the more it naturally ripples outward. That ripple is impact, and your system takes it seriously, as long as you pause long enough to name it.
Missed one of the previous steps? Catch up here:
No judgement, just honesty. Where do your current goals create impact?
Today’s Small Step
Impact as a mindset is a shift from: “Does this even matter?” to “Every action I take has the power to create meaningful change.”
I want you to try this today.
Choose one new goal from yesterday’s list of novel ideas. Now list how achieving it would create positive impact in three places:
Others in your immediate circle (your family, team, clients, friends)
Others in your community (groups you’re part of, businesses, faith spaces, volunteer orgs)
The wider world (your values in action, contribution, service)
Aim for all three. The more impact a goal can make, the more sustainable it becomes.
On Purpose
Yesterday on the podcast, I sat down with Tony Robbins for a conversation that went far beyond motivation, and straight into what real change actually takes.
We talked about why so many people feel stuck, emotionally, professionally, spiritually, and how that stuckness is often rooted in something uncomfortable but simple: delayed decisions. Not a lack of ability. Not a lack of talent. Just the habit of avoiding the moment where you actually have to make a choice.
Tony challenged the way we’ve been conditioned to chase comfort, self-care, and ease as the goal, and reminds us that growth, not comfort, is where confidence is born.
Listen on
If you want to feel inspired, learn practical tools, and hear powerful stories, follow and listen to On Purpose on Amazon Music, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.
