Image by woodleywonderworks licensed by Creative Commons Generic Attribute 2.0
Well, after my last post about un-resolutions, I’ll follow up with some goals for this year. Hypocrite? I hope not. We all need goals – and I really want mine to be clear, so that I can snack away at them in bite-sized chunks. Goals help you tame your activities, and keep them in line with your overall aims. I love this quote, which reminds me that we should be careful what we wish (or plan) for:
“If you go to work on your goals, your goals will go to work on you. If you go to work on your plan, your plan will go to work on you. Whatever good things we build end up building us.”
~ Jim Rohn
Following Money Saving Mom’s advice, I downloaded Amy Lynn Andrews’ Tell Your Time: How To Manage Your Schedule So You Can Live Fulfilled.
I really like the concise tips she gives, and the fact that she quickly helps prioritize goals and manage not only ‘time’ but all of the roles present in our lives. Plus, I could print out the worksheets and plot out my roles and priorities pronto! I’ll share them for future reference and just maybe some inspiration.
Amy Lynn suggests listing out your roles, and I’ll start with mine and their corresponding goals and activities.
Self
Goals: Kindness, Patience, Joy, Discipline
Activities:
1. Disciplined wake-up time every morning
2. Church
3. Being aware and available to help others
4. Exercise
Spouse
Goals: Supporting my Husband; Building up our Marriage; Working as a Team
Activities:
1. Date night and long-term planning time
2. Daily morning email
3. Encouragement notes
4. Daily check-in time
Parent
Goals: Be available/present; Model grace; Discipline and guide wisely
Activities:
1. Play and reading
2. Facilitate playdates and fieldtrips
3. Daily outdoor time
4. Family time
Educator of Miss E
Goals: Instill a sense of wonder; Facilitate exploration; Discipline
Activities:
1. Daily outdoor time
2. No more than 1/2 TV per day
3. Monthly theme and weekly book focus
4. Fieldtrips
Employee
Goals: Income for the family; Positively contribute to work environment; Increase related skills/experience
Activities:
1. Work 9 hours per week outside the home
2. Substitute when needed
3. Learn new skills
4. Keep current with trends in the field
Homemaker
Goals: Be organized and efficient in planning and executing a plan (cleaning, meals, etc); Keep house clean; Declutter regularly
Activities:
1. Cleaning
2. Meal Planning and Prep
3. Groceries
4. Organizing/decluttering.
Student
Goals: Finish B.A.; Network; Daydream about graduate programs
Activities:
1. Classes
2. Schoolwork
3. Writing for publications
4. Editing
Athlete
Goals: Complete a triathlon; Run a 50k; Focus on core strengthening
Activities
1. Become a more proficient swimmer
2. Do at least one time trial
3. Do core strengthening work regularly
4. Stretch regularly
Writer/Blogger
Goals: Be consistent in exercising my writing skills; Read fewer blogs, but comment more often; Limit junk time on computer
Activities:
1. Post 3 – 5 times per week
2. Write ahead for posts
3. Participate in Poetry Friday and Wordless Wednesday
4. Network with other blogging mamas
Wow, if you read all of these, thanks! What type of goal planning works for you? Where have you found inspiration and discipline in working toward your dreams? What are your dreams? Share, share, share.
Maybe in my next post, I’ll share my clipboard life-line, which has all my daily organization ephemera neatly held together. It’s not pretty, but it works.
Hi Megan…I don’t think you are a hypocrit. and I like your clear set goals for this next year. It is always a tricky thing to manage goals and not let them manage you. Life has ways to throw curve balls at you which make us adjust and then we reset the goals..make them relevant. I am a big piture thinker so my goals tend to be general less specific though I do plan alot of skeleton outlines and go about filling them in. This next year, I am excited about these goals:
1. Exercise: I have three or four ways I go about this…my goal to get my metabolism up and be active once a day.
2. School: Training obedience, attention and perfect execution according to Charlotte Mason’s ideas of them. Listen to the boys and find ways to delight them.
3. Personal: learn Arabic better, keep up the blog, make some natural skin products to sell, learn to make notebooking pages, read, and attempt some art .
4. the most important! Follow Jesus during the day. Lean upon Him for my needs, listen to His truth about me, let Him live in me especially where I think I have it all together.
5.cooking: make more non gluten, natural sugar foods. Eat more raw food, or whole foods. Prepare another cookbook to sell.
Usually when I suceed in my goals (and gon beyond them) I have had this attitude in mind, which is simply to see what I get done this day aiming to be productive and doing what the day allows. Some days I get lots done other days not so much. But in the end more is accomplised and I have allowed God space to direct my way. he is great at making paths straight and getting me to short cuts which saves time, money and often my efforts.
Blessings on you as you go into your new year. May God show you how to manage the goals and give you great success.