Goal Setting Made Easy
Hi everyone! Welcome back and Happy New Year! I want to talk a little bit about goals and what they can do for you. Believe it or not, 2 years ago I wasn’t setting goals for myself. The tool that changed my life personally was the Cultivate What Matters Powersheets Goal Setting Planner. This is not sponsored, nor am I promoting this product. I haven’t tried any other goal setting planner, but I am so glad I started with something. Honestly, I think I was too busy coasting through life and not really paying attention to anything. I didn’t have any narrative or direction. I was always just working paycheque to paycheque trying to pay the bills. All I remember is I had no time for fun, and I was always stressed. I didn’t care about setting goals and I didn't really have a good reason one way or the other. I just didn’t care.
I first started seeing the Cultivate What Matters Goal Planner on Cindy Guentert-Baldo’s Youtube Channel. I thought it was interesting, but I also thought it was a huge investment. (Honestly for the good that it does, it’s a worthy investment). I finally took the plunge and ordered the book. The thing that changed my mind was the prep work that was involved in this particular planner. It made me see that setting goals isn’t exactly easy. In order to set good goals that actually mean something to you, you need to do some work.
So, what are goals and why are they important? Well…there is a long answer and a short answer. Here’s the condensed version: Goals are meaningful intentions of what you want your life to look like; things that you want to accomplish, long term or short term. They’re important because accomplishing goals gives you direction and meaning to your life. They also change depending on your life stage and your ambitions, passions and loves.
It’s not easy. That’s the first thing I’ll say. It’s not as easy as saying I want to lose 5 pounds this month. (Although I’m sure that’s been done by many people and accomplished as well). For me in particular, the most important thing to me is my family. (Specifically my kids who are my legacy). My life and what I’m aiming for revolve around them. Of course, I do have passions and hobbies. I was lucky enough two years ago to find my passion (sharing my love of makeup and art on Youtube) and hopefully, turn it into a lucrative career in time. My only wish is that I had started earlier. The more important thing is that I STARTED.
To start creating goals for yourself, you don’t need an expensive goal planner. I’m sure there are plenty of free resources online that you can access if you are having trouble getting started. You need to want something in your life. You need to care and also have the ability to start. As with anything, it’s easy to procrastinate and keep putting it off. A lot of people want to start New Years Goals January first. I say rubbish. If you want something, start now. It honestly doesn't matter what day of the year it is. There aren’t really any specific step-by-step instructions because each person is different and you are on your own journey. However, to get started, this is what I would do.
Start thinking about what’s most important to you. Do some brainstorming on paper. Write it down.
Next, think of where you want to be in the next 5, 10 , 20 years and what you want to look back on when you’re old. What would you be satisfied seeing?
Examples may be business related, starting school, getting a degree, having a family, saving money, working toward a healthier lifestyle, paying off debt, taking a vacation or even starting a YouTube channel.
List the things that you would like to accomplish within the next year. These are going to become your goals. Your initial brainstorming may include a long list, but when it comes to making goals for yourself, it’s best to keep it small. The Cultivate What Matters System lets you create 8 goals, but if this is your first time, I would stick with 5 or less.
Next, break these goals down into smaller parts. Brainstorm tasks you can do that will eventually get you to your main goal. What do you have to do to get there? Put these steps under 3 categories: Monthly, Weekly and Daily. (Note: you could also include a quarterly section if there are goals you can accomplish or work toward in 3 months).
If you keep a planner or bullet journal, you can write the Monthly steps down into your monthly task list, the Weekly down in the weekly section and the Daily steps can become habits. (i.e. Use a habit tracker to track them on a daily basis). For instance, I want to become healthier, so one of my goals is to lose 60 pounds for the year. This is how I have broken it down:
Yearly Goal: Lose 60 pounds in 2021 to become healthier so I can take care of my kids.
Quarterly: Lose 20 pounds each quarter (i.e. Jan-March, April - June, July- Sep, Oct - Dec).
Monthly: Lose ~5 pounds each month.
Weekly: Write out my meal plan and set up my trackers in my planner for water intake and workouts.
Daily: Drink 4 bottles of water, eat breakfast, eat 5 mini meals a day, don’t eat after 6pm, work out, get 8 hours of sleep.
The trick to following through with the goals you have set for yourself is to make sure you are constantly reminded of them, and also you need to be held accountable. You can write them down in a place where you always see them (the bathroom mirror, your planner, the fridge), and also tell your family or friends so they can help to hold you accountable. Since I have a planner system I use consistently every day, I always look at my goals every morning as part of my morning routine. I make it a daily habit that I do at the same time every day.
Another tip that I have learned especially this year is to be flexible. Sometimes things change (2020 anyone?) and you need to change your goals to reflect that change. It doesn’t mean that you should give up on your goals. You can always come back to them at a later time. Remember, there are sometimes detours and all it means is it takes us a bit longer to reach our destination.
Be strong, be persistent and keep faith that you can do it! I believe in you!
💜 SAN
