Imagine for a second, it’s January. You’re setting all your new year’s resolutions. There are so many things you can’t wait to do this year. Then, life sets in. Work, total darkness at 5:30 pm and those goals are mere wishes come February.I think everyone has been there before and if you haven’t, you’re lying! So how do your plan your year ahead in a way that sets you up for success? First of all, you don’t have to start in January, you can start now!
This might be a little time-consuming, but we’re working on a whole year. Here are some of things we’re going to try to plan for the year ahead.
SMART Goals
- Big goals
- Yearly goals
- Setting goals using the SMART Method – Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Realistic, Time Bound
- Budgets
- Monthly goals
- Bucket lists
We’re not making vague resolutions this year. We’re setting goals. You want your goals to be very specific. Instead of saying you want to eat healthier this year, say you’re going to cook a healthy meal at home twice a week.
Now that we have our very specific and measurable goal, we can break this goal down into little habits. Little plans to help you achieve this goal. Work backward from the goal to help you set an actionable plan. You’re eating this healthy meal, you prepared the food, you went to the store to pick up ingredients, and you found the recipe on Pinterest.
This step can be used to plan out all sorts of goals. Running a 5k. Lifting a certain amount of weight on a deadlift. Finally finishing that screenplay.
Using this method can also help you gauge if your goals are realistic. When you take the time to plan your year, you’ll start to see where you might struggle with this goal and have plenty of time to adjust.
I, personally, like to divide my goals up into personal versus professional goals. Financial goals. Travel goals, etc. You can also add in a little bucket list, just for some spice.
Monthly Review
From here, you’re going to work with each month. Identify what went well and what didn’t.
I break my monthly review down into what habits I need to start, stop and continue.
This is also a time to review your budget and see where your money is going. Especially if you have big financial goals.
Helpful Products to Plan the Year
I know this can seem really overwhelming at first. Below I’ve listed some products that might help with your planning process.
I hope this planning process works for you and you can plan for the year and for success!
xoxo
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