Setting Yourself Up For A Great Year Starts With Intention!
2020 was a whirlwind of events, hardships, and heartache. While the hardships, experiences, and consequences can’t magically disappear or be undone with the start of a new year. We can forge new blessings, fortunes, and results through our intentions.
Intention develops careers, fixes relationship, launches new business, drops weight, and so much more! Goal setting allows us to experience the power of intention. This objective forces us to think about our future and what is possible.
Before we jump into goal-setting for the year, read on for Seven Steps To Powerful Goal-Setting. Also, to help us be more intentional with our goals, I created a 2021 Reset & Reflect Goal-Setting Workbook.
1. Embrace The Lessons of 2020
I know it may seem cruel to have you revisit 2020 to help you set intentions for the new year. However, revisiting the highlights, accomplishments, and challenges of the past year will help you truly define and understand your challenges of 2021. It's easy to brush off all of the challenges from 2020 as pandemic-related. What were some failures or losses that were inevitable? What lessons can you take from 2020? How can you be more prepared, more grateful, or more resilient in 2021?
This perspective is good going into a new year that may bring more unexpected events as it will force to always find good fortune in adversity.
What lessons did 2020 teach you that you can take into the new year?
2. Count Your Blessings - Name Them One By One
Entering into the new year, try to look beyond the disappointment from 2020. You can do this by taking an inventory of 2020 and writing a highlight for each month.
Use your phone, social media posts, or past google searches to uncover wins and happy memories that you may have overlooked before.
For me, this practice generated so many happy emotions. Through all of the adversities of 2020, I was able to see my niece being born, take my little cousin to her first protest, create a How To Protect Black Woman Guide, and so much more. It's these little moments of joy that are oftentimes forgotten or overshadowed by negative memories.
Take a few minutes to recognize the blessings of 2020.
What are you grateful for going into 2021?
3. Identify Your Accomplishments and Challenges
Before you are ready to set your 2021 goals, you must evaluate where and how you ended in 2020. Identify 2020 successes and challenges across that various areas of your life: health, career, finance. and relationships.
This reflection exercise will help identify potential improvements and highlight and take satisfaction in what went well last year.
Feel free to repeat some of your highlights here as accomplishments. Some of your accomplishments may be listed as challenges, and that is okay. For example, maybe you were better at setting boundaries in 2020 but want to set more boundaries to improve in maintaining those boundaries in 2021.
How will your accomplishment and challenges influence your goals in 2021?
4. Set A Mantra for the Year of 2021
Mantras are words or phrases repeated to help build concentration and focus. Setting a manta for 2021 is the perfect way to jumpstart your year. It will help you remain positive, be more intentional about what you allow into your life, and allow you to move your life forward in 2021.
Choose any mantra you like - feel free to copy one from the internet or create your own. As I enter 2021, my mantra for the year is Intentionality. With a 2020 Resolution to be more intentional in creating opportunities for myself and to learn and grow to become the best version of myself - Intentionality is the best perfect theme for me in 2021.
What mantra will define your year?
5. Write Your Goals Down
Writing your goals down is the most critical step to completing them. After all, a goaI is just a dream written down.
So how does writing your goals down help you to achieve them? It helps:
Define and clarify your goals
Holds you accountable
Keep you motivated
Show your commitment to them
Limit you changing your goals often
Allows you to review and track them
What dreams are you committing to by writing them down?
6. Commit To Building Better Habits
Once your goals are set, define habits that will help you achieve your goals and commit to building better habits to achieve your goals. This can look like saving a specified amount if your goal is to make a big purchase. Or limiting your daily screen time if your goal is to be more present with family.
For the habits you were unable to complete, take note of what interfered or distracted you. It can as simple as, I did not drink a gallon of water today, because I woke up late.
Understanding this will help clarify what happened, allow you to celebrate what's working, and give you direction to adjust your habits if needed.
What habits are your building this year?
7. Review Your Progress Regularly
Once your goals are set, be sure to review your progress on a regular basis. Tracking your progress is something you can do daily, weekly, or monthly in 5 minutes. To help you do this, keep your goals somewhere accessible to you. You can also use a monthly habit tracker to monitor your progress.
Be sure to check out, download, and share BYOP's 2021 Reset & Reflect Goal-Setting Workbook. I created the workbook based on the above steps so you will have everything you need for a great new year. May 2021 be your most powerful year yet!
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