I am sure that you didn’t have half the shift that happened this year on your 2020 goals list, but that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t step into 2021 with clear goals of what you want to achieve. If you don’t set goals for yourself, how will you know when it is time to celebrate??

First up, I want you to get a notebook and a pen or pencil. I want you to set a timer for 5 minutes and when you hit start on that timer, I want you to spend those 5 minutes writing down all of the goals that you want to achieve in your lifetime. Dream big, don’t let your mind edit out the things that you think you won’t ever be able to do.

Then, I want you to highlight or circle the goals on that list that you want to make a priority and accomplish in 2021. While I want you to dream big, I want to really be selective with the items that are most important to you right now for next year. That way you can focus on them. Depending on the goals, I recommend selecting 2 or 3 that are of the highest importance to you.

Now it’s time to assign some specifics to the goal. If your goal is too general, you won’t know when you have accomplished it. Assign a goal a specific timeline, or value. You need a way to measure your goal. If it is financial, it could be a specific date when you will complete it by, or a dollar value put towards a goal. If your goal is a health goal, it could be the number of times you will work out each week or month. Get creative and figure out how you will track and measure your goal.

I am a firm believer that goals should not be all or nothing. If you reach a goal, you will let off the gas pedal, if you feel like you are at a point in the year where you won’t be able to reach your goal, this can be difficult to stay on plan. To help you stay focused, I recommend setting three different stages of goal achievement! Here are somethings to think about when setting these different levels of goals:

-   Good Goal – achieving this goal isn’t a walk in the park, it will take focused effort and consistency. It feels like a bit of a stretch, but still achievable.

-   Better Goal – this goal feels like it will be a really big stretch. It required some pretty considerable effort and some creative steps!

-   Best Goal – this goal should feel pretty damn impossible to achieve. This goal should scare the crap out of you and make you think that you don’t have a clear path to achieve it. The thought of achieving this goal makes you feel giddy with excitement!

 Okay, you’ve got your goals, you’ve mapped out good-better-best levels for you goal now what? It’s time to make an action list. A roadmap to get you to your goal. What will you do each day and each week to get you there? What are the small steps and the big steps? Small consistent steps are the best plan to get you to where you want to be. 

To level up your chances of achieving your goals:

-   Share your goals with others.

-   Schedule regular check ins (phone reminders are great for this).

-   Make it visual, have a poster or tracker with your goal progress somewhere you see daily. 

Happy goal setting and I can’t wait to hear about all of the things that you will achieve in 2021! If you want to share your goal with me drop me an email at sherry@moneymindsetfc.com

-Sherry