I’m excited!  We are in the early morning dark hours of a waning year, and that new year’s first rays of morning light are about to break through.  I always get excited during this time.  The potential of a new thing, a new beginning, this is the first day of the rest of our lives! Ha!  It’s so invigorating.  I start to dream, and plan, and pray about the coming year and all of its potential.  Oh, there is so much I want to do!  So many mountains waiting!

I know from experience that if I don’t make at least a broad sense of a plan, none of it will happen.  I loose focus and get caught up in everyday struggles.  It is easy to forget about those big goals because they seem so impossible in the moment.  So, while I am excited, I do my best to set some goals for the coming year I want to work on. 

You know what the hardest part of this whole process is for me?  Being realistic.  Yep.  I want to do it all.  And I want to do it all NOW.  I know this about myself and usually end up re-writing my goals at least a couple times.  I still usually end up with too much to accomplish, but they motivate me.  Do I get frustrated if I don’t accomplish all I set out to? Yep.   However, I know that in reality I am more likely to focus on the things that are important to me through the year than if I hadn’t taken the time to plan. And in a way, I set up some accountability with myself when I put the effort into creating a goal.  So I don’t give up.  I keep trying, and every year I do get better. 

Just in case you are interested in doing something similar I wanted to share a few resources that I use, and my process for putting it into action throughout the year. I’m not going to really go into how to set goals here because there’s a ba-jillion resources out there for that. 

Resources

Goal Setting:  101planers.com

They have a free 40 page goal journal you can download and print.  Amazing!  Of course you can buy them too if that’s your idea of  commitment lol.  This website also goes into depth about goal setting if you want to read up on that.

Monthly Calendar Planner

I have been using a monthly planner created by a local ladies sorority.  It’s simple– just a big book with the months across two large pages and a side column for notes.  It’s great.  I write on it, which helps me in my thinking process.  Phones are useful too, and I use the calendar on my phone for scheduled events that my husband and I both need to be aware of. We share a google calendar on our phones so its great for that. But for daily tasks and my own goals I love a planner I can write in.  I’m a bit old school I guess. 

A Daily Task Journal

In addition to the monthly calendar planner I use a notebook that I write my daily to do lists in.  There’s not room on my monthly calendar, plus it keeps my monthly calendar cleaner and easier to read.  My daily tasks are ever evolving so I just turn the page and make a new list if the current one is too confusing.  It happens a lot with me lol.  This one is where notes, phone numbers, ideas etc get written. So I refer to it throughout the year. It’s like a ranchers little red book they keep in their pocket. Only mine’s a bit bigger. And cuter. I mean, I use it every day. It better be cute.

The Process

Step 1:  Set Your Goals for the Year

1. Go through the Goal making process. Set your goals in the areas of your life you want to work on. Then create the steps you need to do to reach the goals and tie them to a timeline.  The 40 page Goal Journal from 101 planners.com will work you through this process. Of course, there are many goal setting resources out there so don’t be afraid to look around for one you love.

2. Take some time doing this. It’s like a road map for the year. You want them to be relevant for more than a month from now.

Step 2:  1x Month Transfer Your Goals Mini Steps to Your Monthly Planner

1. When you set your goals you will break them down into steps that will help you accomplish them. These mini steps need to be transferred to your monthly calendar every month.

2. Write the next mini steps of all your goals in the notes section of your monthly calendar. There will most likely be several. These are now your main goals to accomplish for the month.

3. Transfer these mini steps to days of the week. If you need to break up a mini step more to fit into a day’s task then do it. Schedule a mini goal for several days if you think it will take you that long.

4. Take time to reflect on your large goals and where you are in the process.  Are you on track?  Do you need to readjust your timeline for a goal to be more realistic?  Don’t just give up because it isn’t going as planned, be flexible and fluid. Life happens and we don’t always get stuff done in the time we would like to. It’s ok!

5. Did you accomplish your mini goals more quickly than you anticipated? Then review your goals and bring in some more mini goals to work on. OR celebrate and take a break! Your choice.

Step 3: Daily Transfer tasks from your Monthly Calendar

1. Look at your monthly calendar for the week and day. I am a big picture person so I need to know where I am going to be the most productive. It’s motivating to me to be working toward something.

2. Transfer your daily goals from your monthly calendar to your daily task or to-do journal.

3. If you’re like me, your daily to-do list might be long. So, pick your top three goals for the day, and do them until they are done. These top three goals might not be the tasks that are pressing at you, such as cleaning the house, but if you want to accomplish big goals you have to be dedicated to the little steps. Your house can wait. You have things to do, people to see and places to go!

4. If you get your top three tasks done, then move on to the less important things on your list for the day.

5. My daily to–do task list often rolls over into the next day.  That’s ok.  Some days go more smoothly than others so you get more done.  Here’s a secret, if I run out of things on my to do list, I become unproductive.  I have a hard time refocusing so I usually keep my to do list longer than I know I can get done, I am more efficient during my “working hours” that way.  I don’t sit there coming up with another to-do list. It may not work this way for you, but this is something you have to decide for yourself.

6. It should be noted that you should always plan in “down time” or personal time in your daily schedule so that you give yourself permission to not work. 

One last confession, if you think I accomplish process perfectly everyday you’re very very wrong.  That’s life.  It is a process that I continually work to implement.  If you want to steal a part or all of it…..cheers!  Here’s to an exciting and productive new year.