I have always been a person who sets goals and has the plan. I have always been the to do list crossing off with my list. For me I always have to have a plan and system or else I feel so off. I am not a go with the flow type of person. Creating the right system that works for you is the first step in writing out goals. It took me a while to figure out what works for me because I was trying to do what worked for everyone else.
HOW I SET GOALS
- Figure out my WHY. For the longest time, I would come up with lists and lists of things that I wanted to accomplish because I saw everyone else had those goals. It was what everyone else was doing. Some I was generally interested in and other because I just wanted to belong. One day my husband asked me why I was doing this because I was stressing over it instead of finding joy. I told him it was on my goal list. He then asked me BUT WHY? I couldn’t come up with a good enough answer on why I was doing what I was doing. Since then, when I create a goal I ask myself why at least 5 times. It gets me to the root of the answer.
- Word of the Year: This goes hand in hand with my WHY. Usually most of my goals have something in common with each other so I use that word as a reminder. This year my goal is Consistency. All of my goals require that I am consist. If I want to be truly successful I need to work on them daily. I need to show up to work on them. I usually switch up my word every 6 months.
- Brainstorming Session: There are so many options with this one. This is where finding something that works for you in so important. I know a girl who books a hotel every 3 months and works on her goals and strategy. For me I love Powersheets. Each month I spend a few hours going over my goals from last month, my overall goals, and what I want to accomplish in the upcoming months. Every goal is color coded and broken down into month, weekly, and daily habits.
- Write our Your Goals: I also call this brain dumping. This is where you can write out every single thing you have on your mind. Nothing is too small or too big. Just get it out of your brain. I do this a lot because I feel like I have so much to do then I set a time for 15 minutes and write everything out of my mind. It’s usually not as bad as I made it out to be. This is also why I love powersheets because on the first page in Powersheets is to write your goals.
- Decision Time: What are the goals that are most importnat and align with your why. You can’t accomplish every goal or idea that you have. This is another reason why I love powersheets is because under every goal is a place to write down all your ideas. Some are more important to get done right away, and others can be done later. I like to have my big goal and 1-3 smaller goals that benefit the major goal.
- Create a Plan: After you have goals, it’s time have create a plan to accomplish the goals. This can be done several different ways depending on what works for you. Right now, I am focusing on top 3 things towards that goal. I have my big goal and the 3 most important things to reach that goal. Another plan is writing every step out to reach that goal. There is not a right or wrong answer, but finding what works for you in the current season of life is important. AND know that it will change.
- Work towards Goals: Now it’s time to put in the work to reach those goals. Some of my goals i have accountability partner to help reach my goals or keep me on track. Others I am intrinsically motivated to accomplish. Find what works for you and sticking with that plan is importnat.
It has taken me forever to find a system that works for me, and the same thing doesn’t work for everyone. Finding a system that works for you and sticking with it is the important thing. And sometimes systems change so don’t force it when it doesn’t feel natural or good anymore. Every season has it’s own process, and what works and doesn’t work.
