We've had somewhat of a slow start to our 2018 so far. We've been working on putting away the Christmas decorations and cleaning out the cabinets of all junk food, Christmas cookies, etc. The last few months, I've felt like were so gluttonous! I'm ready to cleanse myself of all the over eating, drinking, spending, etc.
I don't really love to make resolutions, because who really keeps them? I do, however, love goal setting. But, a goal for a year seems so far fetched. I tend to reach my goals if they are more attainable and actually reachable so they don't seem so overwhelming. So, I'm going to start small... make baby steps and pat myself on the back when they are reached!
I have decided that the word for this month of January will be 'CLEANSE'... I want to work on cleaning, purging and organizing our house. Before I make any purchases and bring more 'stuff' into our home I want to simplify and rid our home of things we do not need, use, etc.
Same goes for my diet! I am feeling extra bloated after these past few months of birthdays, our anniversary, thanksgiving and Christmas over eating, sweets, drinking, etc. So, for this month I want to work on cleansing my diet. But, I'm not going to go cold turkey 'Whole 30' because I'm afraid my body would go into shock! I decided to cut out 3 major things in my diet that have been present over the last 2 months... 1) sweets/refined sugar, 2) diet coke (any soda for that matter, but that is always my preference), 3) alcohol aka wine (I may have a glass or 2 for Bill's birthday this month... but that is it!)
Over the past few days, I've stuck to my mini goals of 'restricting' my diet and I've also started to clean out my closet AND have completed putting away all our Christmas decor. I gave myself a little pat on the back for achieving these goals. These small tasks (as minuscule as they seem) are small steps toward a larger goal of mine for the year.
The best way to work towards achieving your
long term goals, is to set
smaller attainable goals in the short term. These goals also need to be
measurable and it's always important to stick to a
deadline. So, if you set a small goal for the day, mark it off when it's finished. If you do not accomplish your task for the day, add it to your list for tomorrow.
In
my planner, I usually write down my top 3 tasks for the day. These are the tasks I need to complete to work towards my larger goals. I make sure that these tasks are completed before any other tasks to to do lists are completed. Obviously, there are other priorities in my day like taking care of my kids, working, etc. These tasks are meant to be completed around the top priorities of my day (
ie. meal prep while the boys are sleeping, or finish my work project before I start to work on cleaning out our hall closet). Most of the time I will actually set a time during the day of when I will work on and complete these tasks. Having a planner that maps our your day by the hour is key! I also love using
these daily to-do list notepad sheets to help me write down everything I need to do for the day.
So here's a little cheat sheet on how I work towards accomplishing my goals:
1. Set an attainable goal for the
year, write it down on paper (
example: lose 10 lbs).
2. What little tasks/goals can you set for yourself
each month to help acheive this goal? (
example: meal plan and prep once a week, go to the gym/workout at least 10 times)
3. What small tasks can you do
weekly to help achieve your monthly goals? (
ex. meal plan for the week on Saturdays, grocery shop on Sundays, meal prep on Sundays or Mondays. Make a schedule for working out at least 3 times each week, write it in your planner)
4. What small tasks can you complete
each day to help you reach your weekly goals? (
ex. stick to prepared meals and snacks, drink 8 glasses of water per day, go to the gym/workout).
When you break down your goals into daily tasks that don't seem so overwhelming, they are much easier to accomplish. Once you've accomplished your small tasks for the day, give your self a pat on the back and remember that you are working toward a larger goal that will slowly seem more attainable over time.
Have you set goals for 2018? What are some tips/tricks you have to help achieve them?
