Image Credit Melanie VanKuyk
I haven’t set any new goals yet, and its okay.
It’s not that I haven’t given it any thought, quite the opposite, I’m thinking and journalling about my future daily.
I’m just not ready to declare my goals yet. I’m still creating the container for my year.
Deciding on the theme, the overall intention my year will have. The one word that sets the tone and acts as a compass when I’m drifting off course.
I’m considering how I want to feel in my body, my parenting, my home, my relationships and my work.
How I want to feel when I wake up in the morning, when I watch the sun go down and when I climb into bed at the day’s end.
How I want to feel when I get dressed, eat food and exercise.
How I want to feel when I meet new people, talk about my career and think of old friends.
How I want to feel when I look at my bank statements, my calendar and open my journal.
How I want to feel on a Monday, on a Friday on a Sunday….. everyday.
Creating the container takes time… reflective time. Time alone, time with others, time noticing throughout your day.
Time reading old journal notes, looking over last years calendar and noticing how you feel.
Time celebrating and absorbing the learning’s from your past.
Time creating a vision of your future, collecting images from magazines and for Pinterest boards.
Time talking about the future with people you love and strangers you connect with.
Once you’ve done this your goals will begin to surface. Goals from your soul. Goals that’ll feel good as you joyfully move toward them.
Because that’s the whole point of goal setting. Knowing what you’re aiming at, and feeling good along the way.
Without a direction of your choosing, your precious time, energy and attention are up for grabs.
Your life is then created by other people’s agendas, by circumstances and of past habits.
If you want this year to be YOUR year, a year that supports what matters most to YOU, and feels good along the way, then invest the time now to proactively design it.
Don’t make it hard, or too formal if that’s not your thing. Keep it as simple as you like and trust what comes up.
Begin by asking yourself these five questions.
Then, look to the future and consider if there where no constraints what your Ideal Day would be like. Not a ‘holiday day’, an ‘ideal work day’. A day when you work to contribute to your home and/or finances. Here’s a fun worksheet that may help.
Now your ready to discover your word. A word that sums up what you want your year to be like. Think of it as a theme for the year, an overarching intention.
I’ve had a word for the past 4 years and its been my greatest guidance.
Trust the words that come to you, that simply float into your consciousness, make no judgement. You may begin with 5, 6 or even 7 possible words. Play around with them, look them up in the dictionary or thesaurus. Use them in conversation.
This year my word is Flourish. This word evolved from Accomplish, Grounded and Prosper.
It’ll guide me as I establish my family and my career in a new city. As we settle into a new home, new schools and new neighbourhood.
It evolved from a desire to feel Grounded here. From wanting to Grow in my work, and to Prosper. From my dream to live in a place where we thrive and Accomplish great things, whatever that means for us individually and as a unit.
We’ve made our BIG move, and now what I want most is for my family to Flourish.
I want to Flourish this year.
I have an intention and my goals have a direction. I can now point my time, energy and attention toward Flourishing as I begin setting new goals.
Now its your turn.
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