Goal Setting for the New Year

“A good archer is known not by his arrows but by his aim.”

Thomas Fuller

And so it is with goal setting. One can have many lofty goals, but without direction to keep one on the path, they can become lost along the way, easily distracted, or end up giving up. Taking time to evaluate key components of our life, and making a plan to foster further growth and achievement, gives one purpose, direction, and a priceless sense of accomplishment, once fulfilled.

A common practice I began with our children 20 years ago, was to sit down together and plot out goals for the year covering many aspects of life. I began this when they were but five years old. It’s proven to be nothing short of amazing. At the end of each year, we will gather round and pull out our goal sheets that we filled out at the end of the previous December, and one by one, go through them and share what each was able to accomplish. Those who didn’t want to share didn’t have to.

Many times over the years, there has been a child (now grown adults), that have even been hesitant to look at their old sheet in fear they had done nothing to accomplish what they had set out to do. I would always encourage them to look anyway, and when they did…. were they ever in for a surprise. They had many times, not only reached their goals, but surpassed them.

We continue this practice to this day. If my kids friends, new husbands, boyfriends are over at the house when we do this, they are welcome to join in, but seldom do. They sit in silence as everyone else scratches on their sheets in deep contemplation. I often wondered what they thought about during that time, and would send them home with a goal sheet ‘Just in case’ they decided to fill it out after all. I have been pleasantly surprised to find each one of them filled theirs out, they just needed their own space and time to do it.

I encourage you to do the same. There is something powerful that happens when one writes something down. First off, it saves us the trouble of trying to remember everything, hahaha! Seriously, it is taking a thought that is in your head, in the invisible world, and the moment you write it down, you have just brought it into the physical world. What’s even more powerful is when you ACT on what you have written with the intent to fulfill it. B.A.M! Powerful stuff my friends.

In absence of clearly defined goals, we become strangely loyal to performing daily acts of trivia. -Unknown

Here are some areas for consideration when setting goals for yourself for 2016:

Professional

Educational

Intellectual

Relationships

Creative things (Hobby, etc.)

Spiritual

Volunteer

Health

Fitness

Fun/Play

Material object(s)

Life can be pulled by goals just as surely as it can be pushed by drives.

- Viktor Frankl

Once you’ve decided what areas you’re interested in setting a goal for yourself, prioritize them. Then simply start at the top of your list. I like to write the goal on a 3x5 card and leave it someplace I will be reminded to read it. Something I found that works for me is I wear a bracelet on my left arm, and once I’ve completed a task towards my goal (whether it’s a phone call, google search, research, errand, etc.), I move the bracelet to my right arm. People ask me, “Why do you always wear so many bracelets?” I tell them, “Because I like to”, to keep things simple, but the truth is, I have a lot of goals, and am actively working on them each day. Find a method that works for you. Some people like day planners, others a pocket notebook, iPhone, iPad, i-whatever.

The momentum of taking action is key to putting things into motion. Soon you will find the obstacles that appear here and there become something you can learn even more by, in other words, when most people stop and give up when a set back occurs, you realize there is something to be gained by the obstacle being there and delve in to get to the bottom of it, never allowing your goal to leave your sight.

All the best to you and yours,

Jill