Welcome! Let’s talk more about goals, because as you may have noticed, it is one of my favourite topics to talk about! Today, I want to discuss how I have incorporated the 12 Week Year (a book by Brian Moran and Michael Lennington) into my goal planning strategies. Like I have stated before numerous times, and what I also advise you to do, is take what works for you and leave the rest. Slowly over time, you build up this nest egg of wisdom, procedures or systems that help define who you are and how you live your life.
After reading this book, I knew there were certain things that I wouldn’t follow through with, but there were other parts that I really liked. I also currently have a system that works, but I’m always up for trying new things and experimenting to see if new sometimes means better. In my case, I use the Cultivate What Matters Powersheets System to create and check in with my goals every month. The problem with following only one system is that it limits you. For someone new to setting consistent goals, this might work for you. It’s easier to start and stay with something if you don’t feel overwhelmed. In this regard, I would advise to just stick with one system. However, if you are a novice at goal setting and wish to gain more insight or work smarter, then maybe you need a hybrid system as well.
First off, any good goal system will start off by saying your goals need:
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to be quantifiable
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to be positive
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to be realistic
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accountability
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to have an end date
You could say for instance, I want to work on my marriage/relationship. A smart goal statement would look like this:
I want to improve my relationship with my partner for 2022 by having a date night every Friday and a monthly family meeting.
Quantifiable: One date night every Friday and one family meeting once per month.
Postive: You are working on something, and this is a positive statement.
Realistic: If you cannot budget for once a week dates, change it to twice per month or once a month, as long as the amount is realistic for you.
Accountability: You would check in with your partner to make the plan work, and write down appropriate dates on your calendar or planner.
End Date: Over the course of the year 2022
When I first started using the Powersheets 3 years ago, I was in goal heaven. I loved the prompts and the strait forwardness of the instructions. While I still love those things, and more, I find that the system limits me in my ability to get things done throughout the year.
Firstly, the only way you will know what you like out of a goal setting system is to try something for a year, and then reflect on it. Add something new next year and so forth. I like setting over-arching goals for the entire year, but sometimes feel like I fall flat towards the end of the year. This is why I decided to check in with my goals on a monthly basis. I liked the idea of also having a quarterly or even weekly check-in system but didn't know how to implement that until I read “The 12 Week Year”.
The most important aspect of this book is that you treat each quarter as one full year. This means that each month is treated as a quarter, and each week like a month. It might sound daunting, like you have so much more work to do in a shorter time span, but that’s really not the case.
What it does mean is you set only 2-4 goals over that first 12 weeks. Now, your only focus is on a few goals over a shorter time period. I find with yearly goals, people either tell themselves that they have all the time in the world to get their work done, and then procrastinate until they don't. Or, they rush through their goals, set new ones and get burn out as a result. So if you cut your focus down to a smaller time limit, you realize that you need to start work now, not later.
In order to be successful at this, you need to plan. (Of course, I’m a big advocate of having a planner), but you don’t necessarily need that. It does help to write things down (so you don’t forget), so this plan could be on a calendar or a single piece of paper. You need to write down a starting point, the end point (what you want to accomplish for each goal) and steps in between. Breaking goals down makes them appear more achievable, and it’s easier to add small steps to a timeline. This is great for regular goals (like the relationship goal above) or project work as well. It’s important to note that you should celebrate your success, even at a mid-point check, like after the first week or two. Also, planning out a timeline for each goal not only helps you to accomplish that goal, but prevents you from over-working and experiencing burnout which is sometimes the case when you are hyper-productive.
As the book states, the 12 Week Plan is an action-based plan. So, if you have all your steps planned out and you know what you need to do each week, and each day, you simply do it. If something happens during the day (i.e Today, my mom invited me over for breakfast, but I had to say no because if I didn’t get the work I’d allocated for today, done, I wouldn’t accomplish my weekly check-point goal), you can make decisions based on your goal. There are times that you can work around this. However. generally you want your plan to trigger your actions and not to get waylaid by outside input triggers.
Read this blog: https://sandradahl.ca/goal-setting/https/sandradahlca/blog-page-url/https/sandradahlca/blog-page-1) to learn more about the different types of goals. I find that the Cultivate What Matters Goal Planning System focuses on yearly goals. They allow you to have a maximum of eight yearly goals, and then when you get to the Tending List, you break your goals down into Monthly tasks, and weekly and daily maintenance goals (aka. Habits). I found that I usually over-use this Tending List (I create more spots to write down more than they allow you spots for). So, in the end, I decided to use my Passion Planner as a secondary Goal notebook. (I use multiple planners and notebooks for my life and business) Check out my planner lineup for 2022 here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fa-CFCQj4Ik.
I always found it more difficult to break yearly goals down into quarters, and those quarters into monthly goals. Now that I’m working with the 12 Week Year System, I find it much easier to look at a twelve week period for one goal. Depending on the time of year, I usually focus on three or four goals every twelve weeks. This means that I could potentially reach twelve to sixteen goals every year, compared to the Cultivate What Matters System’s eight. I usually arrange my goals in terms of the season. (I.e. Vacation time and/or camping will be over the summer quarter, and my Vision Board, which I had never created before was in the first quarter).
The habit goals (aka maintenance goals) that I track are a permanent fixture in my life. When I implement new ones, I track them daily and/or weekly to make sure that I follow through. I usually stop tracking them when they become part of my routine (stay tuned for next week’s blog!) because this means that the habit is so ingrained that I do it without even thinking.
As with any goal, or goal system, it’s important to reflect on it at the end of the term. You should always note and celebrate your successes (even if they are small). If you didn't achieve your expected result, use it as a learning tool. You can always do it again and accomplish more next time. We don’t always succeed, but if the goal is important to you, don’t give into failure. So take the setbacks in stride. Remember that everything we do in life is a process, not an end result. Happiness or satisfaction doesn’t come with an end result. They are found in the every day learning that we do, the small victories and in our everyday interactions.
I would advise that you check out the book “The 12 Week Year” after reading this blog. After using the system for awhile, you will become so well versed in creating smart, achievable goals. Sometimes, it’s only looking back and reflecting on all that we have done that we see exactly how much we have done. Remember to always celebrate small victories. It is in those moments that we find true satisfaction and happiness. Remember to reflect on your progress and don’t give up on your dreams!
Happy Goal Setting!
💜 SAN
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