Goal achieving might not be the easiest thing to do, but a good way to start is with a personal goal-setting practice. You must maximize actability and concreteness through habits. If you are having trouble setting personal or business goals, now is the time to improve and clear this process. Here are five habits for seeing the big picture and taking daily inspired action.
Staying with your essence
You are creative, resourceful, and whole. You already have a vision for your personal and professional life. Consider sharing that essence with others in your close circles personally and professionally so you can clarify and grow your vision. Here are a few ideas for nurturing your essence:
- Journaling
- Meditation/prayer
- Listening to motivational podcasts
Becoming more authentic
Taking into account your whole life (i.e. career, relationships, finances, personal development, health and fitness, extracurricular recreation and fun, etc.), what is the bigger picture you want to “live into” holistically? Ask yourself how happy you are in each of those areas and then focus on the most important areas that you want to grow or improve upon. Set some tangible goals and then take some consistent actions. For instance:
- Practice mindfulness
- Embrace imperfection
- Be true to yourself
By focusing on a few key concepts at a time, you’ll find that the other areas of your life will likely simultaneously “bump up” and improve.
Grow confidence through goal-setting
Start by setting some concrete goals for a set time. Consider where you want your personal life, professional life, or business/organization to be at the end of the year, and then work backward from there. What do you want to accomplish this week, this month, in three months?
Consider listing several tasks on a sticky note that you want to start doing this week that will help move you toward your goals. For instance:
- Time-blocking so you can complete personal and business tasks
- Prioritizing personal engagement and cultivating relationships with your family, co-workers and clients
- Developing effective communication plans for your family, team, clients, etc.
While you may be tempted to add more tasks to the list, keep in mind that you need to leave space in your day-to-day for all that life entails. Be sure to frame your goals with a positive spin and then consider sharing them with one or two supportive people, coworkers, etc. so you can build momentum.
Finding Balance
Don’t let health, fitness, fun, and recreation go by the wayside. Keeping those things consistent in your life will help you positively approach your other connections. When you give back to yourself you open the door to increased focus and creativity in other areas of your life, work, etc.
Creating Change
Stuck on a plateau? Need to clarify a vision? Consider brainstorming with a trusted thought partner who is objective (or perhaps an external life or business coach who is not attached to the outcome). Develop continuity and connectedness with other humans who will root for you and help create pathways for when you are stuck.
As you embark on your 2024 goal-setting habits, remember to stay in your essence and be authentic, grow your confidence, find some balance, and be flexible and willing to change things along the way. Put yourself out there and you’ll get used to moving forward in the unknown.
I came across this great Day Designer website where you can download and print free “Goals and Priorities” worksheets that are designed to help you identify your goals, set your priorities, and reflect on how you spent your time!
Need some perspectives for strategically planning and managing your 2024 donor campaigns? Take a look at our 2024 Strategic Campaign Perspectives.
This blog was derived from my podcast, Maximize Impact with a Big Picture Focus and Goal Setting with guest Maria Cristini.
