With the new year, it is always the perfect time to not only reflect, but look toward the next year and set some new goals or even just refresh old ones. I don’t know about you, but when I sit down to plan out a whole year I can get a little overwhelmed. Where do you start? What’s realistic? Are you setting big enough goals? 
I have a few tips for you that I hope not only helps create, but maintain your 2015 goals.
1. START BIG & WORK BACKWARDS: YEARLY
This is your ‘big picture” goal. What is one or two main goals you want to hit. What is your financial income goal? Ultimate weight loss goal? Redo your house? Make about 5 categories (example: finances, health, faith, family, home) and write your big goal(s) under each category.
2. MONTHLY
This where you will start breaking down steps so you can achieve that big yearly goal. I would definitely invest in a *cute* monthly calendar planner so you can always have a visual. Write at least one to three things you are going to do each month that will be you a step closer to your yearly goal. Bonus if your calendar has a side space for notes/goals. Make sure these are more attainable than your yearly goals.
If you run a business like me, then it is especially crucial to visualize your months. If you plan marketing or big events you need to know the end date and back up from there several weeks so you can promote and prepare for those things and not have it sneak up and pass you by. It will allow you to be a lot more stress-free I promise!
*This is the calendar and planner I’m using. 2015 Sugar Paper line*
3. WEEKLY
Breaking it down more, I would then look at weekly goals. Maybe do one thing a week towards your goals (which will total to 4 steps or touch points you will have accomplished towards your main goal at the end of each month). Start with time sensitive events and things to do and that will lay a foundation out for planning your goals around your responsibilities.
4. DAILY
This is where I get trapped the most and where things go sidetrack real fast for me. My BIGGEST tip is make your daily things to do list the NIGHT BEFORE. I go to bed feeling less stressed and tend to be more productive in the morning when I have already done my task list.
Also, be very careful of two things: Email & Social Media. Often times my email quickly makes my to-do list for me because I’ll start answering client emails and having to do side projects for that and my day is gone. Also with social media it can be a huge time suck. A tip to combat that is to get a cute timer you can set to give yourself 30mins to check out what’s latest and greatest and then be disciplined and get back to work.
These are literally the steps I take when planning and mapping out my year, so I hope you find them helpful and make goal setting a little less daunting and more attainable!
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