Set goals for different areas of your life, write down, prioritize and start small
I don’t know about you, but I have a love/hate relationship with “resolutions”. So, for the next three weeks as we start 2024, I am going to challenge you to set a GOAL that you want to achieve this year.
The goal you set can be in any area of your life so it could be related to your health (eating better, losing some weight, working out more), related to your career (getting more clients, being more productive, getting a promotion) or something related to your overall life (changing a bad habit, having more work/life balance, getting more sleep, saving more money or reducing debt).
So maybe you have a few things that you would like to achieve, so let’s write them all down and then prioritize them. When you prioritize, really think about what you really want to accomplish this year. Things to think about when making your priority list are:
- Is this just an “achievement-oriented” goal as opposed to something more long term?
- Is this a priority to help us live in the present as opposed to something in the future?
- Is this something that will help me improve my life?
- Is there one item on this list that if you do it would make everything else unnecessary?
Now that we have prioritized and picked our ultimate goal, let’s look a little deeper at our goal and make sure we are using the SMART strategy:
Specific – make sure our goal is well defined and clear
Measurable – specific criteria that measure progress toward accomplishment of the goal
Achievable – make sure our goal is attainable (not impossible to achieve)
Realistic – our goal should be within reach and relevant to your purpose
Timely – make a clearly defined timeline to create urgency in achieving this goal
This is a new year which is a new beginning so make your goal very specific! Achieving even one small goal can boost your belief in yourself! While many people may feel that they don’t achieve their resolution goals, one study showed that those who set New Year’s resolutions are 10 times more likely to actually change their behavior than people who don’t make these yearly goals.
I would love for you to share your goal with me or with someone else you are close with (maybe you have a friend that can keep you both accountable in achieving your goal). This week start with small steps relating to your goal and next week we will talk about our habits and staying motivated!
