Goal Setting
Goal setting is an important part of achieving your dream or vision you have set for yourself. It could any one of these; yearly, monthly, weekly or daily goals. Whichever one you are planning, if you are really serious about achieving your goals you need to take some time to plan and get absolutely clear about them (once you are clear about your vision first of course).
For those who have downloaded my free printables, I hope you like them and are making good use of them. For those who haven’t, you can download your free printables here through my sign up link. I personally have chosen these ones; the Monthly Goals Breakdown Planner and Habit Tracker because I know they will give you immediate results – IF you use them of course.
They won’t do anything for you if you just leave them sitting away in your inbox.
I was never really a planner or a super organized person. But after having three kids, and running two businesses, I know something’s got to give.
As busy as I was, I had to make time for everything. And here I am, where everyone wants my attention or needs me to do something for them.. or spend time with some one or some thing. I had to make time to cook, run errands, do housework, online shopping (thank GOD for that), doctor’s and dental appointments..And then, there’s the non-negotiable time for the husband. Time for prayer, entertainment and most importantly – time to get out my creative juice: for creating, hustling, packing, sending, newsletters and the list goes on and on…
Gosh, you must be thinking..how did I do all that with a house full of kids, a husband and two businesses?
Goal planning of course.
And yes, a lot of the credit also goes to my husband, Peter who is my rock in supporting me and my work and helping me with the kids and household when its needed.
I needed to be disciplined too – to stop when I needed to stop and get focused on completing a goal I have set for myself. That’s a tough cookie I must say because of the daily distractions that surround me each day. So if you missed a day, keep going, do it the next day but do not stop.
“Don’t do your best. Just do”. – Wayne Dyer
Of course what Wayne (God bless his soul) is trying to say is that you don’t have to be perfect in everything you do, but to work on your goals consistently, every day.
And the way to do it is to FOCUS.
First, cancel out the noise and focus on your thoughts/goals. Print out your printables. Sit down for 30 mins to an hour and plan your goals for the month first and then break it down. And if you’re using my free printables, see how I do it below:
Real and Uncut
I like to be super realistic, open and honest with you because that’s just how I roll…
So here it is, a sneak preview into the goals of a fellow designer. It ain’t all pretty and tidy I know.. but once I get ideas in my head, I had to scribble them all down…hence the messy hand-writing. But hey, be yourself.. and do whatever floats your boat. Saw my little flower doodles? Well, that’s just some things I like to do. Be yourself and put some personality into your goal-setting page if you like.
Then.. I fill out my tasks and goals into the Tasks Overview of the Week Planner. That’s one of my newest printables I have just created. Caution: It’s highly addictive to use. I have just started using this week, and I feel that it is already helping me to stay clear of distractions and I got so much clearer on what I have to do this week.
Let’s focus in on Week 3. See below how I do it:
So, I’ve taken what I’ve written down on Week 3 (left picture) and fill in the Tasks Overview Planner sheet (right picture).
If you can’t finish the extra tasks for the day.. feel free to move them around to suit the availability of each day. But do your best to achieve the goals for the week.
And that’s how you plan a fully productive week.
The Painful Reality
Oh yes… and the lack of sleep is also inevitable when one is chasing a dream.
There were a couple of weeks when I only have 3 to 4 hours of sleep. And when I finally head to bed like 4 am in the morning, the baby was crying and I had to feed her before I was able to lay my head to rest. So there were tough nights/early mornings. But I do it NOT because I have to.. but because I have a BIG vision in my mind that I can clearly see and a BIG enough why for me to push through ahead those tough days.
Whether you are in a similar (I hope not), stressful and tired situation like that.. just take a deep breath. Breathe. Relax. And then, say to yourself…
This too shall past…
And it will.
Have a clear vision
So you need to be clear about your vision first. It could be learning a new skill, completing a project for a client, building a playhouse for your child, to lose a few extra pounds or to achieve financial success.. whatever goals you have, you need to be clear on what the outcome you want and then plan ahead. Start with a big goal and then break it down into chunks.
Have a BIG enough WHY
You need to have a strong why and not just any why. Find a reason strong enough that makes you want to get out of bed to do it – no matter how tired or exhausted you are. And that magic WHY will pull you through the hard days especially when you feel like giving up.
My WHY is that I want a better life for my family. My kids are my driving force for me. I wake up everyday wanting a better life for my children. I want to give so much more back to society, the poor, to charity, to the church and the lives of children who are lacking education around the world.
Here’s a very cool video for you to watch if you need a boost of inspiration:
So before you get clear on your goals, go figure out your why if you haven’t already.
Do you have a BIG enough why to help pull you through the hard days of achieving your dream?
If you like my free printables, you’ll love the Inspired Printables Club! If you want more printables like this, join the club!
Printables, design elements, graphics and any digital products provided on this site are for personal use only. You may NOT modify them or redistribute them for free or monetary gain without the written agreement from the author, Janice Banks. You may share these with your classes or co-workers (educators/teachers/tutors) as long as they are not modified in any way. Please share the link to the blog post if you want to share these digital resources with others.
