If you missed it, last week we talked about Setting Goals for the New Year, so go check that out first.

Now that you’re all up to speed, we’re going to talk about practical ways to make a plan that lets you actually reach those goals.

Don’t try and do everything at once.

Last week, we set priorities for our goals and looked at how much time they would take. Now, we have to realistically look at how many goals you can work on at once. It might feel good to say you’re going to start out the new year as a new person, but the reality is that changing everything can be overwhelming and cause you to just give up entirely. So, I would recommend that the most you do is start with one goal in each of our areas: one habit, one skill, and one relationship.

My recommendation is that bi-monthly or quarterly, you check yourself on how you’re doing and if you’re ready to add another goal.

Creating a Structured Plan

Setting goals is essential, but without a plan, they remain wishes. Once you’ve picked the goals you’re starting with, there are a couple of things we’re going to do.

Break them down into weekly chunks.
Make tasks lists
Prepare your resources

Breaking down Your goals

So, as a part of your SMART goals, you set a timeline. What you need to do now is break down that timeline into reasonable chunks. So, if your goal is to write a book by the end of the year, you need to section out how many words you need to write each day, week, and month to know you’re staying on track. If you want to self-publish it by the end of the year, you need to give yourself edit and design time, so maybe you only have ten months to write the book.

Setting a clear breakdown will give you a clear path to follow and help you stay motivated as you work towards your goal. It’s also important to be flexible with your targets. This is why setting a couple of goals, such as a number of words in a day or week, is a good idea so that if you get off track one day, you still have the goal for the week to get you back on track.

Also, if you realize you were a little overzealous and feel like you’re missing all of your steps, don’t be afraid to reset your goals and adjust to something more realistic. The most important thing is to keep moving forward and making progress towards your goal.

Here are some additional tips for achieving your goals:

Break down your goals into smaller, more manageable tasks.
Set deadlines for yourself and track your progress.
Reward yourself for your accomplishments.
Ask for help when you need it.
Don’t give up!

Make Task Lists

Once you know what you need to do each day or week, decide what you need in order to accomplish it. Do you need a space, tools, or a checklist? Come up with all the things you need to be successful and gather those into a clear space.

Prepare your resources

Once you know what you’re doing, you need to prepare your resources to succeed.

Time

A game changer for me when it came to time management and reaching my goals was time blocking. This made it possible for me to know exactly when I would do the things I planned and make at least a more realistic plan than what I would create on my mind without a calendar.

You can do time blocking and task planning on paper if you want, but I highly recommend a digital calendar like Google. This allows you to set recurring events and make sure things do not accidentally fall of the calendar.

First, you’ll want to set all the standard parts of your life. Work, getting ready in the mornings, bedtime routine, time with family, meals, etc. Now, once you have that all planned in, block out when you’re going to work on your goals.

One of the best ways is to time-block your calendar. This means setting recurring blocks of time for everything you need to accomplish.

Here is the order you want to put things on your calendar:

What you have to do every day, week, month, and year. This includes things like work, school, and household chores.
Relationships you want to prioritize. This includes spending time with family and friends and maintaining your social life.
Goals. These are the things you just wrote SMART goals about
Additional things you want to do. This includes things like hobbies, exercise, and relaxation, vacations, etc.

Once you’re finished adding everything to the calendar, assess how you feel about it. Look at a variety of weeks throughout the year. Are there any areas that make you feel overwhelmed? Are there places where blocks are overlapping and need adjusting?

Ultimately, after you do this, it should be clear if it’s possible for you to achieve your goals in the time you thought it would take. If you have too much overlap, you need to reassess your priorities and whether you need more time to get everything accomplished.

Materials

The next resource is your materials. This could be a quiet desk space, having the right exercise equipment, pens, and paper, or downloading the right apps. Whatever you need to do your tasks, make sure you have all the materials and have them in the right space for you to be successful.

Creating a workspace that supports your productivity can help you be more efficient and effective in your work. Here are a few tips:

Keep it organized. A cluttered workspace can be distracting and make it difficult to focus. Make sure your workspace is clean and tidy and that you have everything you need within reach.
Keep it well-lit. Good lighting can help you stay alert and focused. Make sure your workspace has plenty of natural light, or use artificial lights if necessary.
Free from unnecessary clutter. Clutter can be a major distraction, so it’s important to keep your workspace free of anything you don’t need. This includes things like papers, books, and personal items.
A dedicated workspace. If possible, try to create a dedicated workspace in your home or office. This will help you to focus and be more productive. If it’s not a dedicated space, figure out how to create a bag or box that keeps everything together and easy to grab when you need to get it out.

A dedicated workspace can help signal to your brain that it’s time to focus. When you have a specific place to work, your brain will start to associate that space with productivity. This can help you get into the right mindset for work and be more efficient with your time.

Money

My recommendation is not to spend money when you first start out on a new goal. If you have to spend some, that’s reasonable. But try to make the thrill of buying something new a reward for getting to a certain point in the process. Maybe you want to start a podcast instead of buying a microphone and editing software and such. Set a goal of 10 posted episodes before you buy your microphone or maybe a certain amount of listeners to buy some software. But the excitement of the new will help you keep going and working towards that end goal.

Minimize barriers

The common example is if you want to go for a run every morning, have your running clothes and shoes ready to go by the bed so you don’t have to think about it; you just roll out and go.

Other options would be putting supplies you need to work on something in strategic locations that make things easier or stand as reminders of what you want to accomplish.

Identify common distractions in your life and take steps to minimize them. This may involve turning off social media notifications, silencing your phone during work hours, or finding a quiet place to work.

I hope this helps you start the new year with success and confidence that you can make your goals a reality. Make sure to leave a comment with the first goal you’re going after in the new year.

Stay weird,