Now that we are on our way into the New Year, I’d like to remind you that you are enough. Perhaps you haven’t set any goals yet for this year. Maybe you’ve set some lofty goals that you’re not sure you can or will hit. Just remember, goals aren’t set because you know you can hit them. Where’s the fun in that?
This time last year, I published this post. I really enjoyed taking the time to look back and see how it went!
Did I hit all of those goals? Absolutely not.
Did I win? Yes!
Why? Because I accomplished more than I would have had I not set goals.
I thought it would be fun to review last year’s goals to see how things stacked up…
Read More. I wanted to read a book per month. If I reached that goal after the first quarter, I would start reading two books per month, one fiction and one non-fiction. I read a total of 7 books in 2017, 4 for business (personal development) and 3 for fun (fiction). The most noteworthy were The Ideal Team Player by Patrick Lencioni and Write It Down, Make It Happen by Henriette Anne Klauser. It all started off strong, and I did great finishing one book per month. But it all went downhill in August! I believe that is quite closely related to the new role at my full-time job, which started in June, so getting into a new rhythm contributed to the downfall of my reading trend. For this year, I would still like to read at least one book per month. More on that in a bit!
Ask for Help. Since I’ve learned that I can’t do it all, if I found myself coming close to a deadline or knew I’d bitten off more than I could chew (both personally and professionally), I wanted to do better about raising the flag early and as often as necessary to get the job done. To be completely honest, I think this goal is just weird. In hindsight I now know that it lacked the proper specifications that I needed to have success. I would reframe this goal as more of a lifestyle change vs. a goal. I would also define it as “recognizing my limitations.” All that aside, I met this goal, but was forced into it. I became completely overwhelmed last year, which took a huge toll on my husband’s and my health. He even ended up in the hospital at one point! That’s an issue for another post, but I was forced into asking for help and realizing my limits. I’m much more balanced when I realize that others can (and want to) help.
Control the Clutter. When my computer, phone, or home became cluttered, I wanted to remove the junk. And the more proactive on that, the better. This goal was not very specific, and overall, an epic fail. While I managed to keep my head above water by not allowing the clutter to control me, that was all. Decluttering wasn’t a priority in 2017 with everything that went on. That’s something I hope to tackle this year in the form of an opportunity, a project that I can write about here and overcome in small bite-sized pieces.
I encourage you to set goals for this year. There’s always time, and you can set yourself up to shoot for something. To turn a dream or wish into a goal, it must be written down, defined, and deadlined. The more specific, the better. That way you’ll know when you got it!
Here is a list of some areas where we are encouraged to set goals so that it touches different aspects of our lives:
- Career
- Financial
- Social
- Physical
- Spiritual
- Intellectual
- Family
I’d like to take a minute to share a couple of my personal goals with you again this year. The reason is to encourage you and provide accountability for me. It will also provide some examples of things you can shoot for if you put your mind to it.
Intellectual. I want to read one personal development book per month. How do I plan to make that happen? I’ve actually put together a list of books for the first and second quarters (below). I added an extra book to the list as well, and that’s not in case I don’t like one. It’s a plan for if I’m running ahead of schedule, which is a possibility since I love to read! If I put a name to it, then it makes it much harder not to do it. If you expect to hit your goal, it’s amazing what you can do!
Here’s what I’ll be reading January through March:
- Business Boutique by Christy Wright
- How to Lead When You’re Not in Charge by Clay Scroggins
- Listening: The Forgotten Skill by Madelyn Burley-Allen
- Never Split the Difference by Christopher Voss and Tahl Raz
Here’s what I’ll be reading April through June:
- Asking Questions the Sandler Way by Antonio Garrido
- Hero by Meg Meeker
- Retire Inspired by Chris Hogan
- The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey
- The Cancer Killers by Sayer Ji, Charles Majors, Raymond Hilu
- The Road Back to You by Ian Cron
Financial. I would really like to hold quarterly “budget meetings” in the form of date nights. My husband and I hardly ever go out to dinner, so it’s a good excuse to get out of the house for a few hours and spend dedicated time coming up with a plan for our money. You can budget money and even time. If you don’t, it’s amazing how quickly they both disappear! We use the EveryDollar app for our budgeting because it’s our favorite price – free! – easy to use, and just amazing. I am still in search (or creation) of my ideal time-budgeting tool!
When you get discouraged this year (and you will!), think about how a button works. It’s so seemingly small and insignificant. However, if you’re missing one and you’re like me, you absolutely will not wear that sweater until it’s fixed! Such a small piece has a very important role. You are just like that button. You might feel small. Some days you might feel like a whole bunch of nothing. But you aren’t. You mean something. Small things with determination amount to great things.
☕️ Journal Java
- What is your biggest concern around setting goals?
- What are your goals for this year?
- What do you feel will be the main obstacle you will need to overcome to succeed in reaching this year’s goals?