New Year, New YOU!

A new year always brings a fresh start, so what are you going to do with yours? I find planning goals for my life makes achieving them more attainable.  Big goals can seem overwhelming without a plan to achieve them. Focusing on what you want to accomplish will help you break down the ways to get there. Goal setting can also help relieve the stress and pressure that come with wanting to "be" someone great or "do" something big. Additionally, defining goals will help you stay accountable, especially if you share these goals with someone else. Defined goals will provide you with a framework for evaluating your progress throughout the year. Accountability partners can help you with this! There are many benefits to planning goals for yourself personally and professionally. So... how do you go about making goals? Here are a few tips!

Consider Franklin Covey's Productivity Pyramid - Start from the end or bottom of the pyramid. What are your foundational or governing values? Consider what drives you and your life. Is it your family? Is it your devotion to God? Perhaps its seeing the world! Then consider the long range plans you have for your life. Perhaps you want to own
your own business by 35 or perhaps its to be debt free by 50. Once you've established these long range goals, think about the intermediate goals to get you there. What can you do in 2013 to support your goals? Maybe its time to expand your network... that's important if you want to own your own business by 35! Finally, try focusing each week on what you can do to help you reach these intermediate goals. Make that uncomfortable phone call to have lunch with a new business contact this week! Breaking goals down into increments like the Franklin Covey's Productivity Pyramid suggests makes goal setting a bit more manageable.

Also consider SMART Goals - SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Action-Oriented, Relevant, and Timely. When planning goals for yourself, be as specific as possible. Just saying you want to be financially stable isn't enough. Goals like owning your own business by 35 and being debt free by 50 are more specific. Being specific also means your goals will be measurable. If you're turning 34 and are not close to opening your own business, you know you are behind schedule. Having measurable goals is a great way to keep you accountable! Action-oriented goals keep you working towards achieving them. These goals aren't just pipe-dreams, so take action! Your goals also need to be relevant. Do your goals honor your governing values? Are they going to help you achieve what is important to you? Don't let your goals misguide you! Finally, have timely goals. Give yourself a timeline for completing actions. This will also help you stay on schedule.

So what are my goals for 2013? Starting The New Pink Collar was one of them.

Happy new year - Here's to a new you!