Hi friends! Today, I’m thrilled to share with you 3 useful tips for setting goals.

I LOVE setting goals.

But I also know that it can be hard to actually track and manage all those lofty goals that you wrote down the first of the year. Writing down goals is great, but actually accomplishing them is far better. With all the distractions and daily interruptions that flow in and out of our days/weeks/months, how do we make sure to stay focused enough to actually achieve and nurture goals over a whole year?

Well that’s exactly what I want to share with you today–3 tips for creating a system that allows you to actually achieve goals this year. In my years of goal setting, I feel like I’ve found a system that works for me when it comes to staying focused and making sure each month/day/week’s work is adding up to achieve the overall vision I set out to do in the first place…and I’m so excited to share them with you today in hopes they help you accomplish more this year! So without further ado, my 3 tips for setting goals:

 

3 tips for actually achieving your goals this year:

1. Write down your goals. Use a tool like Lara Casey’s PowerSheets that include a huge intake prior to writing your goals to help you set really good ones. I have used her sheets for 3.5 years and they have truly helped me write out an overall vision not just for the year ahead, but my life! When it comes to setting good goals, make sure you take the time to look back and be thoughtful about the overall direction you want your year to go in relation to the fuller view of your life! 
2. At the start of every new month, use a calendar with a month view to write out the specific goals you want to achieve that month. Equally important is writing out every other time-consuming event or necessary work that is going to need to be done that month (this will keep you realistic by accounting for your time well). The calendar I use is Emily Ley’s Simplified Planner (daily edition). I love how she includes an overall month view as well as a daily view that includes a task list (which is helpful for tip #3, below). Truly, you can use whatever works for you, don’t get hung up on the specifics. Also, take it a step further by setting an electronic calendar reminder (or if you use a task management software like Honeybook, that works great as well!) to do this on every first Monday of the month.
3. On Fridays, as the week ends, look ahead to the following week and delegate tasks that need to be accomplished that week in order to keep you on track. I love doing this on Friday (vs Monday) because as I am closing up the office for the week, I inevitably feel that I didn’t get to finish all that I wanted. Taking the time to look ahead to the coming week reminds me that there is time for those things and writing them down/scheduling them when they’re fresh helps me let go. I’m free to enjoy a work-free weekend!

I attribute so much of my success to being able to articulate goals and doing the intentional work of chasing after them day after day. And that little phrase really is key, so let me say that again…doing the intentional work of chasing after them day after day. I hope sharing these tips for setting goals help you achieve more focus this year as you go about pursuing your dreams!

Have any additional tips and tricks? Drop them in the comments! I’d love to hear!

Happy New Year, friends!!

xoxo,

Charity

 

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