There’s a lot of hustle and bustle at this time of the year. With my sons, nieces and nephews busy producing the next generation, my shopping list has been growing at a rapid rate. I love shopping for the little ones, but I’ve reached the point where the holiday crowds have become overwhelming!
Fortunately, I’ve learned to make the holiday season manageable by shopping early, and doing some of it online. I’m happy to say that I just purchased the last gift! Now I can relax and enjoy the rest of the holidays with that biggest of the “to do’s” on my list accomplished.
With that big “To Do” out of the way, I can now focus on the most important activity of this time of the year. For me, it’s all about reflection, assessment, wrapping up of the year, and gestating ideas for the New Year. Now I’m reviewing what I’ve accomplished this year and am assessing if there is anything else I want to complete before year end. Then I’ll begin setting goals and objectives for next year. Yep! I’m already making plans for 2016.
As busy as the Holidays are, taking time out for reflection and assessment helps me end the year with a sense of completion. It helps me stay grounded and focused during the whirlwind of activity and fun with family and friends. Then when New Year’s Eve hits I can truly celebrate because I’ve already been gestating my goals and objectives. I know where I’m heading and what I need to do in 2016.
I highly recommend this introspective practice of making plans for the New Year. The benefits you reap are much greater than the time it takes!
If you’re curious about the process, I’d love to share what was given to me by one of my mentors.
First, find some quiet time where you do nothing but reflect and think. For me, the best time is during meditation. You, however, might prefer a leisurely walk along the beach or hiking trail, or sitting quietly with a latte at a local coffee shop. Whatever works for you is great, but the idea is to set aside time to be alone with your thoughts.
Then let your mind float over what you might want to complete this year and fantasize about what you’d like to do next year. I’m reaching a point where if something feels too hard, or like too much work, I pass on it. Instead it’s much better to let your mind float to those things you feel excited and enthusiastic about. You can tell what they are because you’ll start feeling energized and the juices will start flowing! I find that when I reach this stage I can’t wait until I can sit down at my computer, or with pen and paper, and start jotting down ideas!
This leads to the third step in the process. Now it’s time to start putting those goals, projects and ideas on paper. Don’t worry about the order or time frame. At this point just do a ‘brain dump.’ Sometimes you might get it all down at once. Other times you might find that you’re updating, revising, expanding, and perhaps contracting your list over several days. It’s all good. Your primary focus is to get down all the ideas and goals that feel exciting and energizing.
Once you have all your ideas down, then start organizing them into goals and the steps, or objectives, that need to be completed in order to achieve them. They should be S.M.A.R.T. goals.
What? What’s a S.M.A.R.T. goal?
Specific – This means you should have a clear understanding of what it is that you will do and what the end product will look like. For example, last year my goal was to do a weekly e-zine providing useful information to my following. A weekly e-zine is a specific goal, and the e-zine itself is the end product.
Measurable w/ Measurement – This means you should have some idea as to whether you will meet the goal or not. For example, I’ve been about 75% successful in getting out a weekly e-zine. Considering I’m human and have a busy schedule, I feel pretty good about my success rate for the first year of trying to execute this kind of an aggressive goal.
Achievable – This means that there is a high probability that you can be successful at achieving your goal. For example, since I’ve been about 75% successful in getting out a weekly e-zine, then a weekly e-zine was an achievable goal.
Relevant – This means that your goal should serve a purpose, or have an impact. For example, my purpose was to share useful information. Frequently I receive positive feedback from my readers which validates that my e-zine has relevance.
Time-Oriented – This means, “When will you achieve this goal? What are the start and end dates?” For example, the time-bound goal for my e-zine was ‘weekly.’
Evaluating your goals to make sure they are ‘S.M.A.R.T.’ will help you stay practical and reasonable about what you can accomplish so you don’t fall victim to overwhelm and burn out, get sick, or give up!
Once you’ve evaluated your goals, then start organizing them into 3, 6, 9, and 12 month goals.
Once you have your quarterly goals identified, then it’s time to begin identifying and scheduling weekly steps or objectives. At this stage I tend to drill down the weekly objectives for just 3 months at a time. I always keep the larger perspective in mind, but I’ve found that ‘life happens while we’re busy making plans to do something else.’
Goals and objectives often need to be fine-tuned and re-evaluated as the year progresses. One year I had knee surgery, another year I fell in love (not a good excuse for getting knocked off track, but I had fun!), and another year the recession hit and I had to change course mid-stream to adapt to the new economic situation . It’s important to keep some flexibility in your schedule so you can adapt and re-assess as needed.
Now, schedule a time to review your goals and objectives weekly. This will help you stay on track with the smaller objectives so you can hit your targeted big goals in a timely manner. Mondays are a great day to do this. It’s the first day of the week. A quick review of what’s on your schedule on Mondays will help you stay on track so you can have a productive week, and a prosperous year!
With everything else that you have on your schedule, I can already hear many of you groaning about having one more thing to do! But I promise you, if you take time to do this, not only will you complete this year on a high, but you also will ensure that you have a more successful, prosperous, and happier New Year.
Next week I will be giving tips on how to manifest for the New Year, so stay tuned.
If setting your goals and objectives for the New Year feels too overwhelming, then give me a call and schedule a complimentary 30-minute consultation to find out how I can help you get organized and on track for a prosperous New Year. Call Joy at 415-819-8769 or email me today!