Goals vs Resolutions. How to set them and try to keep them.

I am asked a lot about what we do for goals and resolutions every year. In my house, our goals are a family discussion and are oftentimes more than one night of conversations. We have even had a New Year’s Eve party that started with playing Robert Kiyosaki’s Cash Flow game and doing goals for the year that were shared with all the couples for help with fine-tuning and accountability. This has produced some amazing results for many of our close friends and we are grateful for the opportunity to be a part of that! You know who you are… Love you all!!

My number one tip on this is not to set the bar so high that you cannot achieve the goal. One of our first goals years ago was to save $100 a month and have that $1,200 at the beginning of the following year. The small goals you can achieve help set you up on a path for big success later on.

Many people make resolutions at the beginning of each year and hope to keep them going a few weeks in. We try to focus on goals, not resolutions. We set up categories to include but are not limited to, personal, professional, family, household, financial, savings, and health goals for the year. We usually have 3 to 5 items in each category. We like to set it up in a big list that we print up and put up in the bathroom or closet where it can be reviewed regularly. However, I will be honest; it is usually forgotten about by about May.

We try to keep our long-term goals fairly fluid. Things change over time that is tough to anticipate. I never in my wildest dreams saw myself owning cows, goats, or turkeys. Definitely did not see that one coming! 

When we are doing the New Year’s goals, we start out by looking at the year prior and what we hoped to have accomplished and review long-term goals. Typically, we accomplish 60-70 percent of what we set out to do, even though things change when we start to forget the list.

After such a unique year we experienced in 2020, this year may look a little different. Here is a brief look at two of my personal goals and one of our family goals for 2021.

SELF-CARE. 

This is number one for me. Stress and isolation can be so daunting and detrimental to our health. Working remotely can be rewarding in so many ways but can also lead to working too much and less social interaction. Taking time to take care of myself sometimes takes a backseat to family and work life. This year I am making it a priority.

GET OUTSIDE MORE. 

This ties into self-care. I have found my stress levels go down when I get fresh air and sunlight. Even a quick lunch or coffee break outdoors can be a refresher. I love to try to watch the sunrise from outside when I can to start the day but definitely need to spend more time outside this year.

The family goal I will share is to do two family outings or projects a month like horseback riding, going to the safari park, or a big gardening day.

What are some of your goals or resolutions? Careful… I will be asking about them at the end of the year!!! Let’s keep each other accountable, shoot me an email with your goals – michele@seiboldgroup.com.