Creating Meaningful Goals
One of the things I focus on in my work with clients is helping them to create a process in their lives which supports their goals. We often start with finding ways for them to get organized in their daily routine. This can include developing a nourishing self-care practice to set a positive tone for the day, making lists of tasks to accomplish, and scheduling guideposts to track progress and movement.
Having clear goals helps to integrate the elements of your routine in a sustainable and balanced way. These can be personal, professional or creative goals, just to name a few. Maybe you want to leave your job and start a business. Or you may be looking for new ways to expand your audience as an artist and make money from your work. Or you want to make some long-term changes to your health and transform your eating patterns. Whatever it is you want to change, creating goals around your desires is an essential step for taking action.
Your goals must be meaningful for you to commit to them.
How many times have you started something you felt lukewarm about, only to abandon it shortly after? No shame, we’ve all done it.
Sometimes we stop working toward a goal because of fear.
But that’s another post for another time.
So how do you create meaningful goals?
Be specific
What exactly is it that you want to achieve? It isn’t enough to say, “I want to make money from my art.” Be more specific. Do you want to make enough money to pay your bills? How much money do you want to make from your art monthly or yearly? The more specific you are with your goals, the more clear they become to you and the easier it is to integrate them into your daily routine. If you want to start paying your bills from your writing, then you know you must prioritize writing time into your day.
The ‘Why’
Why do you want to achieve this goal? Why is it important to you? Sometimes we have goals we’ve ‘inherited’ from someone else - do you really want to go back to school for that degree, or is that what your mother wants for you? Does your goal have a story? Explore that. Knowing the ‘why’ helps us to stay connected to our goals. If we don’t know why we are doing something then we’ll probably check out.
Your Gut
Does your goal make you feel excited? Scared? Capable? When you think about working on this goal every day, how do you feel? How do you feel when you think about finally achieving it? Some emotional ups and downs are to be expected when we’re working toward something over time. Each day, each step can bring its challenges. But there’s a difference between a healthy challenge and being burdened. You want your goals to stretch you, not break you.
Your Timeline
When do you want to achieve your goal? Is it short-term or long-term? Some folks find it helpful to set goals for 1, 3, 5 and 10 years. That doesn’t work for everyone, but it helps to clarify a time frame. Maybe you like the idea of setting a goal for 15 years from now and breaking it down into action steps you can complete each day. Or maybe 15 years seems so far away that you find it hard to stay connected to your goal. Think about what works for you.
Your Vision
Goals can be a powerful way of making contact with your dreams. How does your goal keep you in alignment with the larger vision for your life? How does it allow you to experience your vision on a consistent basis? How can you bring more of that into your daily routine, right now, right where you are?
If you need support & guidance for creating meaningful goals, I look forward to connecting over a session.