Goal-setting tips + tricks for 2021

If you’re like me, you might be looking at the calendar and thinking: “How can it already be mid-January?” Granted, while it’s a new year, the weight of 2020’s baggage nevertheless lingers. Also, I’m still trying to establish my goals for the next 12 months. For those who might need a little extra push, I’ve compiled a list of “Top 10” links (in no particular order) that focus on goal-setting tips and tricks for 2021. And, if you wonder about the worth of goal setting, according to Forbes: people with goals prove 10 times more likely to succeed. Good odds in my opinion.

1. https://www.forbes.com/sites/mikekappel/2020/12/10/become-a-pro-at-setting-business-goals-in-the-new-year-with-these-6-tips/?sh=3894eeb83900: be specific + celebrate milestones
2. https://www.greeleytribune.com/2020/12/29/tips-and-tricks-to-goal-setting-for-a-successful-2021/: get support + embrace failure
3. https://rdicorp.com/4-tips-on-goal-setting-set-yourself-up-for-success-in-2021/: be SMART
4. https://medium.com/@KellySchuknecht/7-goal-setting-tips-to-make-2021-the-best-year-ever-17926e76127c: think outside the box
5. https://www.coaching-online.org/goals-for-2021/: think about the “why”
6. https://www.daveramsey.com/blog/smart-goal-setting: make it measurable
7. https://dirtybootsandmessyhair.com/a-guide-to-effective-goal-setting/: make it relevant
8. https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newHTE_90.htm: create an action plan
9. https://benjaminhardy.com/if-you-dont-believe-in-setting-goals-its-because-you-dont-know-how-to-do-it/: adopt a growth mindset
10. https://alwaysthewritetime.wordpress.com/2015/05/13/setting-goals-isnt-brain-surgery/: stick to it

What’s your favorite goal-setting link, tip and/or trick?

Image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net.

Keep on keeping on

 

[Image credit: stockimages]

Let’s talk setbacks. I’m now a week into my 14-day plan  to change my life and I’ve committed to the whats, but every time I try to implement the whens, I run into a brick wall. The last setback was in the form of food poisoning—five hours of violent and painful, episodic and uncontrollable spasms in which my insides splayed open. All I could do in between bouts of “Oh my God I’m dying,” was curl up in a fetal position and cry for my mommy. But, (slow), lasting change is what I desire and, thankfully, all my plans are written in pencil (or at least can be modified with a click of the mouse). I also have a support system that rocks—a circle of a few close friends who are my “lifeline” when I feel like giving up. They swoop in, grab me by the proverbial boot straps and inspire [read: swift kick] me to keep on keeping on.

How is your circle of support?

Dreamers and doers

[Image credit: Stuart Miles]

Surround yourself with the dreamers and the doers,
the believers and the thinkers,
But most of all surround yourself with
those who see greatness within you
even when you don’t see it yourself.
~ Edmund Lee

Last weekend I attended my first writers’ convention.  What an unforgettable day surrounded by like-minded people — writers, published authors, editors, agents and publishers — with an insatiable passion for the written word.  I walked into the conference seeking a jump start to the creative process.  I walked out encouraged, excited and equipped with an arsenal of resources to help me as I move forward with my writing career.  Whether it’s family, friends or a professional “support group” (or preferably all of the above), I realized how crucial it is to align myself with a network of the dreamers and the doers who share the same enthusiasm.  Otherwise, it is too easy to get hung up on our failures rather than on our successes.

Do you surround yourself with like-minded people who inspire greatness?

Overcoming resistance

[Image credit: meepoohfoto]

What you have to do and the way you have to do it
are incredibly simple.  Whether you are willing to do it
is another matter. ~ Peter F. Drucker

In my recent post, Taking the first step, I mentioned I’m writing a book.  Recently, a friend of mine turned me on to a study guide by Victoria Lynn Schmidt called, “Book in a Month.”  It includes a plan on how to — you guessed it — write a book.  In 30 days.  Schmidt includes steps for overcoming resistance, which make sense for anyone with a goal.

• Create an outline.  From start to finish, how are you going to get where you want to go?
• Break your goal down into small, realistic tasks.
• Hold yourself accountable; gather support.  Join a writer’s group, fitness club, weight loss program.
• Visualize the entire goal from start to finish.  Stay focused.
• Create a deadline.
• Celebrate your successes.
• Make it a habit.

What are you willing to do to get where you want to go?

Explore, dream, discover

[Image credit: taoty]

20 years from now you will be disappointed by the things you didn’t do
than by the ones you did. So throw off the bowlines.
Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails.
Explore. Dream. Discover. ~ Mark Twain

One of my friends was told she was crazy to pursue her dreams.  That her aspirations would likely fail as so many who have gone before her.  She posted this on Facebook and received an outpouring of support in response, several mirroring the words of Mark Twain.  As for me, I don’t want to look back Someday and regret not: losing my heart, taking a chance, following my goals.  Because Someday, it will be too late.  A few months ago, I was faced with a choice between one of two things.  Before making the decision,  I asked myself which one I would regret.  I didn’t have to think twice, made my commitment and never looked back.  Thanks to another friend, I’ve heard this is the key: once the choice has been made, no second-guessing or disappointments are allowed.  Sometimes this philosophy is hard to stick to.  But as life continues to move forward at warp speed, I realize more and more that I would rather take the risk of falling, than never leave the starter’s box.  I figure that skinned knees are a lot easier to fix than unrealized dreams.

How are you going to explore, dream and discover today?

When only up close and personal will do

[Image credit: photostock]

Technology and its ability to keep us connected 24/7 has been a lifesaver for me.  I honestly don’t know that I would have adjusted as well to a cross-country move a dozen years ago without email and mobile phones, and since then Facebook, texts and Skype.  But no amount of technology can “fix it” when you want nothing more than to be face-to-face during something as simple as a celebration, or as complicated as an unexpected hospitalization.  Updates still travel back and forth via satellite, but no amount of technology can make up for a message conveyed only through the human touch, or even a look that speaks volumes.  Right now I find myself in a place where I desire to provide support and comfort to a close friend going through a difficult time — while knowing my hands are tied.  And I feel helpless and a bit lost even as I offer up words of love and encouragement.  I know my friend understands and would feel the same way were the situation reversed.  I just wish things could be different.

Are distance or logistics preventing you from being up close and personal?