Happy New Year! It’s time to shake off the shitshow that was 2020 and bring on 2021! A new year for me (and I hope for you too) represents new goals, new challenges, the opportunity to be better, and a new planner….I just bought my 2021 planning calendar and man, she is a beaut!
Despite 2020 being a straight-up nightmare for everyone, I was pretty lucky to have such a great year… I went on a girl’s trip to Colorado before the world shut down, celebrated my 30th birthday, started The Proper Seal, and have remained happy and healthy! I can’t ask for much more!
As I look back at the goals I set for myself in 2020, I’ll be the first the admit it, I am not super proud of the progress I made. Water – hate it. The F-Bomb is still one of my favorite words, the majority of my travel plans were canceled, and every time I cook I almost burn the house down. However, despite getting shin splints, I managed to squeeze in two virtual road races so go me!
Fun Fact: Did you know that 92% of people do not meet their yearly goals.
Fun Fact: Did you know that 92% of people do not meet their yearly goals.
So how can we become one of the 8 percenters who actually obtain their goals? Keep reading to find out!
The ABC’s of Goal Setting
The ABC’s of goal setting is as easy as 1,2,3…just kidding! Creating goals for yourself and actually achieving them is hard, hard work! It requires commitment, good habits, healthy behaviors, and an emotional connection. Setting a “true goal” for yourself means going out of your comfort zone, being connected, and emotionally invested. A “true goal” is not something easy you can check off in a day…it’s a bigger goal that you are constantly working towards.
Let’s break down the ABC’s of goal setting…
A stands for Anchor….what is something that you do every day that when you are doing it, that action will prompt you to think about working on your goal.
B stands for Behavior…this is the actual act of you working on your goal.
C stands for Celebration…this sounds silly but every time you complete that specific behavior, celebrate yourself! You just did something to work on achieving your goal! That happy feeling you feel after you just accomplished something great, that’s dopamine!
Now let’s set some goals
This year has been huge for me as far as self-development goes. I think when I turned 30 I had a come to Jesus moment with myself to get my life together! HAH! For the first time ever, I took the time to find out what really matters to me, cut out negative energy, and really focused on a positive transformation. I think that self-exploration is critical for success and everyone should take the time to dig deep within themselves to determine what matters most to them.
I just recently listened to a podcast that was discussing goal setting based on the five R’s…
Review
Reflect
Refine
Results
Remind
This method really struck a chord with me so I figured I would pass along the information I learned.
When setting new goals it is important to take the time to review previous goals. What did you actually accomplish? This can be applied to both personal and work goals.
It is also equally important to reflect on your past year in order to make any positive headway moving forward. What did you do this year that really motivated you? Is there anything that pissed you off that resulted in a change of behavior or thinking? Overall, how did this past year make you feel? In order to create a “true goal”, it’s vital to also assess what motivates you to keep pursuing your goals…is it family-related, work-related, financial reasons? Listen Linda, if you aren’t reflecting, you aren’t learning so just keep that in the back of your brain.
Now let’s refine those goals. The more specific you are when making goals, the better the chance you have at actually achieving them. Kick vagueness to the curb…really define what your goal is so there is no room for a slip-up. For example, one of my goals for this next year goes a little something like this…”Work out at least 5 times a week. I will achieve this by waking up at 4:30 in the morning, following my favorite fitness app, and will reward myself with a protein smoothie post-workout.”
Creating tangible goals is a great way to achieve results! For me personally, I will be setting personal development goals, professional goals, financial goals, and business goals. Within each of those categories, I will be coming up with 2-3 goals that will serve me in a positive way.
In order for anyone to achieve their goals, they need to remind themselves every day/every week of what those goals actually are. I’m a big fan of writing them in my planner. I might start writing them on my mirror! Do what works for you!
Is this goal-setting journey going to be easy…HELL NO! But big, amazing dreams require work and consistency. Not every day will be a walk in the park. You may fall into a funk and that is ok too! Forgiveness is a big part of success. Pick yourself back up and keep pushing forward!
So welcome 2021…you have one simple job – be better than 2020! I’m excited to start setting some goals for myself! What goals are you going to set for yourself? Comment below!
