Happy New Year - 5 Areas to Focus on in 2018
Happy New Year Family and Friends!
I pray 2018 brings you peace and greater purpose!
I don't know about you but 2017 was a challenging yet rewarding year! In 2017, I was broken and stretched in many different areas of my life through circumstances that I was sure I wouldn't survive, but by the Grace of Almighty God I did! As the popular adage notes, "Fail to plan, plan to fail." It is with this in mind that I share with you 5 Areas to Focus on in 2018 when creating your goals to make this the best year yet!
1. Spiritual goals are integral to making your year and the years to come successful. Some goals you can set in this area includes but are not limited to:
Reading your Bible more.
Incorporating more meditation in your quiet time. (For me this would be taking a particular scripture from the Bible and really listening to hear what God would have me receive on it for that day.)
Exploring God's purpose for your life.
2. Health goals help to ensure that you are in good physical shape to accomplish your goals in 2018. Some goals that you can set in this area are:
Drinking more water daily.
Exercising at least 3 times weekly.
- Including more fruit and vegetables in your meal choices.
3. Finances can be a bit challenging for a lot of people. If you are like me, this beast has managed to slay you year in year out! No need to fret because there is hope! One my favorite sayings/proverbs is: How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. Here are some ways you can slay the beast of finance this year:
Create a budget for 2018.
Create personal financial statements to see where you are currently. (You maybe saying, "I already know where I am, trust me!" And I understand this line of reasoning, and yet I think it is important to point out that having an idea and knowing realistically your current position are two different things.)
Sign-up for workshop and trainings on how to improve your current financial position. (For my family and friends in the Cayman Islands, Brianna Wilkinson at MadeWell345 has some amazing workshops and podcasts on this topic. Check her out!)
4. Career can include anything from your academic plans to your personal development objectives for the year and beyond. Here are some examples of goals that you can set for this year:
Attend 3 personal development workshops for the year.
For writers - write one blog post per month.
Read 10 new books for the year.
5. Family for some of us tend to be the cornerstone on which everything else springs forth. Family doesn't only have to be blood relations, it also includes friendships and other socially created bonds with people. Here are some examples of goals in this area:
Have one family meal together weekly.
Check in on family and friends more frequently over the course of the year.
Carve out time once a month to do something fun and creative with those you love.
Now, the goals shared above are just examples of goals you can create for yourself. Feel free to change and adjust them to fit your personal needs.
Finally, in addition to splitting your goals into 5 Areas of Focus, another way that you can further manage the successful completion of your goals is through categorizing them. You can do this by putting your goals into 3 categories:
1. Most Important Goals - These are goals that are extremely important to you. For each of the areas mentioned above, I would suggest not having more than 5 goals in this category. This is to ensure that you can realistically accomplish the goals you have set. Once you have completed these goals you can move on to the other goals on your list.
2. Important Goals - These goals are important but not as important to you as your Most Important Goals. Only move on to these goals one you completed all your Most Important Goals.
3. Would Be Nice Goals - These are goals that it would be nice to complete but if you don't get them you wouldn't be upset at yourself. You only move on to these goals once you have completed your Most Important and Important Goals.
How would this work? Glad you asked! For instance, under the area of Finances you may have come up with 15 different goals you would like to accomplish in 2018. You could split these goals into the categories above (Most Important, Important and Would Be Nice Goals) to make them less daunting and more attainable.
Over the past few years, I have learned the importance of being gentle yet firm with yourself. Here is what I mean: we need to be gentle enough to know that we are doing the best we know how and firm enough to be truthful with ourselves when we are not. Many times the reasons why we don't successfully follow through on goals at the start and throughout the year is because we don't put measures in place to keep ourselves accountable.
When setting your goals for 2018 and beyond, remember to ensure that not only are your goals S.M.A.R.T. (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely), you should also have measures in place to keep you accountable through the process of accomplishing your goals.
If you would like to know what applications I have been using to get prepared for the year ahead, comment below! I would also love to hear what you have planned for 2018 and what you are doing to ensure your dreams become a reality this year.
Peace and Love,
Latoya - Da Dreama
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