It’s barely the beginning of February and so many are already overwhelmed with the goals and paths that they’ve chosen for the year, distracted by the haunting gnawing of fear. Maybe you’re even considering starting your plans over from scratch and reducing those goals, but then you feel frustrated because that would mean January was a complete waste of your efforts.
Business owners, office managers, students, new parents, striving individual with big dreams, etc… whoever you are, hear this: YOU can do it. YOU are a strong independent woman (or man) who don’t need no plan revisions.
Read through this blog, grab 2018 by the tonsils, and pull yourself out because by the end of the year you’ll have grown so big that you’ll be the one swallowing tiny one-month-left 2018.
1. Stop looking at your big picture.
It’s great to have a big picture; necessary, in fact. BUT you won’t get anywhere frustrated that you’re not taking out sizable chunks each day. Take your big picture and put in on a wall behind you. That way it’s around when you need to refocus, but not staring you in the face to make progress.
2. Break down your goals into tiny pieces.
Around 300 pieces, to be specific. You have a year to meet your goals; that’s why they’re your 2018 Goals. No one makes “February 2018 Goals” [right?]. Regardless, you should really break down your goals into daily, bite-sized, reasonably achievable parts. You will feel much less stressed seeing “call person x to discuss such and such” or “finish two sections of my proposal” rather than “Win a Nobel Peace Prize” on your To-Do’s for the day. Each afternoon your To-Do list should be completed to a satisfying emptiness, so you can fill it with fresh items the next morning. Imagine how much nicer that’ll be than an emptiness in your soul [you know, from never completing anything].
3. Stare at screens less.
Let me guess, you’re an entrepreneur with a startup that uses cloud-based management platform for operations or finance. Or maybe you’re an average person who lives in the digital age. Either way, you still look at screens too much. Give yourself a break from the lumens and go get a snack, or just stretch your legs across the office. For Pete’s sake, take a restroom break! At least twice a day, you should be taking time away from your desktop, laptop, phone, headset, tablet, or whatever else you use. Go look at a bird or something.
4. Listen to your body
While we’re on the subject of breaks, you need one for your mind and your body, perhaps even more so for your body. Use that fancy device of yours to set an alarm or reminder for, let’s say, every other hour. Every time you hear it, step away from what you’re doing, close your eyes, take a deep breath, and notice what your body is saying. Have you been hunching all morning? Are your eyes dry? Did you take that restroom break earlier? Relax, fix what you can fix, maybe even try that mindfulness meditation activity you read about. You’ll feel so much better at the end of the day. A healthier daily you is a happier goal-achieving yearly you.
5. Find your Exit Buddy
Do you have your exit buddy? Find someone who also needs help and motivation achieving their 2018 goals, but also has equal desire to achieve.
“But Sarah, I’m the only person with my exact goals and paths. How could I possibly find a proper exit buddy?” I’m glad you asked! Say for example Dave from sales is one of the nicest people you know, but he is also the most loquacious person you know. You’d love to chat with Dave, but it would take up so much of your time and you can’t just tell him that a conversation with him would leave you feeling an emptiness in your soul. He might not read our blogs and wouldn’t understand what you mean, and he’d take it pretty personally. Dave doesn’t deserve that. Solution: you’ve already told your exit buddy Melissa what your goals are and that Dave is an easy distraction for you. Melissa, who is immune to Dave’s conversational power, will slide in and distract Dave so you can get back to your goals! Next, you email Dave to tell him to read our blogs.
Not only will exit buddies help you stay away from your distractions, they’re there to hang out with once you’ve cleared your lists for the day to talk about how much progress you are both making and how you’ll celebrate later! If you just need a motivational pick-me-up, you two can meet to discuss Audrey’s “Inspirational Quotes To Motivate You” being posted next week and other blogs in RMPR history.
I hope these 5 tips keep you afloat from drowning in your goals, and as Shia says: “Don’t let your dreams be dreams!”
What tips do you have for staying on track each year?