2011 goal

photo by lizzi

the goal for 2011

i've written this post with some question prompts along the way to help you with your own goal setting for the year. so let's get started. what are you hoping this year will bring you? i mentioned in this post that I'm striving for balance. for me it's is all encompassing. it means so many different things.

how i chose my goal
spend some time thinking about and then documenting how you chose your goal. you might be surprised at how writing it all out can help empower you to take action. here's the story behind mine....


we all wear many hats - each with its own set of responsibilities. i'm no different. i'm a wife. a new mom. a daughter. a sister. a friend. a training consultant. i also have a lot of passions, interests and quirks. i love creativity. i love art. paper crafts. performing arts. i'm a self help book junkie. i'm analytical. i'm a ponderer. i'm a dreamer. i love taking photos. eye candy. i love the idea of meditating. i love the idea of picking up acting classes again. i love the idea of learning to sew. it goes on and on and on.

when i'm interested in something, i tend to pursue it passionately. i throw myself into things - always with the goal of exceeding all expectations. these things tend to consume me. these are work projects, marathon/triathlon training, scrapbooking, wedding planning, doing the nursery, etc. etc. etc. @ the end, i love looking back and feeling that sense of accomplishment. that i kicked butt. it feels good. it's definitely rewarding to do something so well that you astound yourself.

now though, i want more balance. this means making time for the different aspects of my life. this means not putting parts of my life on hold while i'm attending to the project of the moment. sure the scale can be tipped, just not tipped over.


the plan
how do you plan to accomplish your goal? for me, it's simple. change the way that i allocate my time and attention in a way that i'm continuously nurturing all aspects of my life - my hubby, baby, home, family, friends, personal needs, etc.


there are a ton of things that i want to do. be a kick ass mom. read a bazillion parenting books, spend more time with just me and the hubby. cook more. craft more. spend more me time. get the house in order. do a better job of connecting with family and friends. finish a bazillion house projects. etc. etc. etc.


there's just not enough time to do all of these things to the degree that i would want to. if i did, the scale would tip over. i'd have to put other things on hold. things that can't be put on hold. things that shouldn't be put on hold. so i need to restrategize.

i know that an overall goal and a general plan is not enough. we need to identify specific actions that when completed together will help achieve our goal. hold on. there's a rule. pick actions that you know you can complete. we're not looking for a list of challenging items. we want to feel good by increasing the likelihood that we'll meet or even exceed our expectations rather than guilty that we didn't.


here's my list...

1. every weekend, work on at least one house task (this can be small, like replacing a light bulb or big, like creating a play area for chase)
2. every weekend, do something fun for chase (park, children's play place, swimming, etc.)
3. every weekend, go one place fun for me and paul (sometimes this will overlap with #2). this doesn't mean without chase - that would be too challenging to schedule.
4. every 2-3 weekends, see friends or family
5. once per month, spend some me time (borders, quiet crafting, etc.)
6. get a massage once every 3 months
7. try one new recipe a month
8. hire a maid at least once every other month
9. reward myself for accomplishments
10. before buying something complete a task first before i allow myself to buy it

for some of these goals, i would love to do them more frequently. and, maybe i will. but i tried to stick to a frequency expectation i know i can meet.



eliminate obstacles
the next step is to identify any obstacles that might be standing in your way. if you're like me, your goal might be something you've been wanting for yourself for a long time, but you just haven't had the success you've wanted. chances are, there are obstacles in the way that we can eliminate. here are 2 of mine:

1. i spend a lot of time dealing with things - putting things away, cleaning things, looking for things, finding homes for things, going through piles. this takes away from other uses of my time.
2. unnecessary steps or other inefficiencies in some things that i do. this also takes me away from other things i could be doing.

to address this, i plan to be stricter about things that i buy so that i'm not bringing in more things that i'll ultimately need to manager. i also plan to get rid of more things around the house. i also plan to create some simple systems, processes, routines for things that i/we commonly do with the goal of improving efficiency.




Good luck!
i feel good about getting this all written out. i feel super motivated, encouraged, planful, hopeful and excited about the year. good luck with your goals. please let me know how it's going from time to time. :)