Goal Setting in the New Year! Happy 2023
Happy New year to you all! This time of year my world gets busy! People feel motivated to make changes and feel hopeful about the possibilities for positive change. The key to creating lasting habits is a combination of both accepting yourself as you are, your gifts, strengths and weaknesses you were given and being able to set small measurable goals. Micro goals are easy to follow through on and tend to last and develop into lifestyle habits. As humans we typically want large results and big change if we are going to go through the effort. We can get caught in a cycle of if only I could X I would feel Y and things will be different. This can add stress and create overwhelm which can lead to failure in fulfilling your goal. Instead create a micro goal to just eat 1 more vegetable a day, focus on eating 3 meals a day, or maybe it's just having a better relationship with food. Whatever it is that you need more of based on who you are not what someone else is telling you that you need.
Here are steps that I see and teach that lead to successful goal setting and positive outcomes.
Take time to think about the goal. Start being clear about your values. This for me might look like taking the time to make the meals that make me feel good. The value is treating myself with care, the goal is meal planning on sundays.
Then work through the smart goals and be thoughtful about whether or not you have the resources and if it is necessary. I might wonder if I have the time on my sundays. The answer is sometimes. What would I need to give up to meet this goal? Potentially some social time with friends and my partner. I wouldn't want to give up time with kids so inviting them to meal prep what they want to make for the week as well. Then using the following goal setting.
S
Specific
How will it be accomplished? What actions will you take?
Ex: I will create a menu most sundays. I will make a grocery list Sunday and bake muffins.
M
Measurable
How will the data be measured? How much? How well?
Ex: I will monitor to see how often I meet this goal and examine why I might miss it.
A
Achievable
Is the goal doable? Do you have the necessary resources to accomplish this?
Ex: can you make the time in your day? Can this be a priority?
R
Relevant
How does the goal align with broader goals? Why is the result important?
Ex: this goal will help me meet my larger goals of feeling better while I am training
T
Time-bound
What is the time frame to accomplish this goal?
Ex: I will be regularly eating meal planning so that I am feeling good and eating the food i enjoy by the end of the month I will have used sundays to male plan 3 of the 4 sundays.
It takes 21-365 days for a change to become a habit. Have patience and it doesnt need to be perfect. If you miss a day or don't follow through on your goal. Check in with yourself as to why that happened; maybe you didn't have the resources that day to accomplish the goal, maybe that goal was not what you needed, or maybe you just slipped back into your old way of operating. This is all ok and it's important to acknowledge, don't shame yourself but move on and try again.
Small successful micro changes can ripple into larger changes. A great example of this is making your bed. It's a simple habit but it creates a new routine of order in your home. Small habits that are for self care and not self change can create subconscious communication of self love. This is motivating and lasts! Good luck with your micro goals and HAPPY NEW YEAR!
