Planning for an AWESOME Year!

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Goal setting has changed a lot for me over the years.

I used to plan major achievements and accomplishments, but now prefer to focus on building habits slowly and surely.

The end result may be the same, but the journey feels more sturdy and less uncertain.

Building habits and implementing smaller changes, are the stepping stones to greater things.

I've also had to rein myself in a little as my busy brain does not always live in line with my fatigued body.

Even though I've been feeling much better, I still have to be careful not to get carried away as I can easily slip into a major flare up that will leave me suffering for a long while.

This year I aim to be a lot more intentional with my planning and also with the follow up.

I'd like to get better at following though. Which means frequent reviews of my progress.

Here are my baby steps to goal setting (and keeping):

Pray about it

It's always wise to include God in our plans and preparations. Ask Him for wisdom and guidance is reaching for things that matter instead of getting sidetracked by shiny distractions.

Make fewer goals

Too many goals cause us to focus on too many things. The fewer goals, the higher chance of achieving them.

Map out the steps to reach each goal

Goals without plans usually fail. Think about all the details needed to get to the end and plan how to implement each one.

Focus on the process rather than the end result (when appropriate)

This is not always appropriate, but often is when it comes to healthy living goals.

For example, many months of eating well and exercising consistently, may not result in attainting the specific number on the scale we hoped for. This is a time to take pride in the effort you have put toward maintaining healthy habits instead of feeling like a failure.

Create reminders

Sticky notes on the mirror, a list to review each morning, or reminders on your phone are all ways to keep your goals in the forefront of your mind.

Making a good plan in the first place

This coincides with the making fewer goals and mapping out the steps of how to get there.

If you are anything like me, you may need a decent chunk of quiet time in order to make a good plan for your goals (and life).

I've taken some time already, but will be taking more in the coming days.

Something I'm using as a guide is this wonderful ebook from Erin Odom: Your Retreat: A Guide to Giving Yourself a Personal Planning Day

It's only 99 cents this week and comes as a PDF with forms you can print out as well as tons of helpful advice on planning and preparing for a great year.

The Kindle version is also 99 cents

In this 64-page guidebook, you will find:

encouragement and motivation on how to create your own personal planning retreat
examples of the tools needed to plan
35 printables to guide you through your own retreat!

Get it while it's only 99 cents! PDF or Kindle version.