Gosh, 2021 is almost behind us. What a weird year it’s been. In many ways, 2021 actually felt harder than 2020. I think it’s because I went into 2020 fresh and oblivious to all the difficulty that lay ahead. After that crazy year, I went into 2021 pretty worn down and it went downhill from there. Honestly, I didn’t even bother making any big New Year’s resolutions last year. I just didn’t have the energy.
While I feel like I have even less motivation this year, I do want to make some achievable plans for the year ahead. I think having a few goals to work towards is a good way to build momentum again and try to find the everyday good.
I’m keeping things achievable
I’m Low Energy Jeb right now. So, building myself a huge list of big goals to crush isn’t going to get me moving. I’m more likely to feel overwhelmed and not bother if I choose goals that require too many steps forward. As I think about areas that I want to improve in, I’m selecting the simplest steps I can take to see change. No, I won’t be telling myself to ‘work out four days a week’ or ‘stop eating sugar’. That’s just not achievable right now (or maybe ever?).
Being honest about what I’m really ready to take on is important, as is being gentle with myself. My perfectionist streak wants me to achieve everything, yesterday. I’m slowly (and I mean really slowly) learning to give myself grace. I can’t fix everything in one go. Baby steps will get me there better than trying to sprint all the way.
I’m breaking my goals into categories
Okay, maybe this is the perfectionist part, but I love having categories for my goals. Life isn’t one big mass, it’s lots of different things. You’ve got to take care of your mind, body and soul. There’s your work life and your personal life. Don’t forget your financial goals and any side hustles or major hobbies you have. Personally, I don’t think one blanket goal works for all those different things, so I break it up.
Firstly, I’m looking to my mind, body and soul. I’ll write a specific and achievable goal for each of these areas that moves me where I want to go. Then I’ll write down at least one goal for my work and one for the blog (at least!). Working with my husband, we’ll come up with goals for our married life and our finances.
“Oh gosh”, you say, “that’s seven goals!”
Yes, but remember that these are small goals. Baby step goals. Seven small goals spread over a year is actually pretty achievable. Some goals may even be able to overlap, such as the mind/soul goals.
I’ll write them down and keep them where I can see them
New Year’s resolutions are all well and good, but there’s no point if you’ve forgotten what they were by January fourth! Once I’ve honed in on what my resolutions will be, I write them down and keep them somewhere I can easily see them and be reminded of what I’m working towards.
This year, I kept them in the goals section of my Amelia Lane Life Designer. However, I found that because they were hidden in the book, I forgot about them pretty quickly. This year, I’ll be writing them out and putting them up in my wardrobe so that I can see them every time I get dressed in the morning. Find a spot that works for you, but make sure your goals are some where you’ll see a lot of them.
I’ll make sure these New Year’s resolutions are important to me
I’m looking for resolutions that will help me get moving more, but not necessarily in big workouts. There will definitely be some book-reading goals. Better blog planning goals. Learning to say no to things. Whatever they are, they’re going to be things I care enough about to actually follow through on.
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