As the end of the year draws to a close, I find myself daydreaming about what I want for 2018. I believe December is the perfect time to start to reflect on the year you’ve just had and create some thoughts about what you want to see for the year to come. Some people like to set New Year’s Resolutions, which is such a great thing to do (as long as you try your best to stick to them). However, a lot of studies have shown that after the month of January, the majority of people have already broken their resolutions. Because of this, I prefer to ‘set goals’, and this way, it is a lot easier to stick to my intentions and track my progress. I break down my goals into the following five categories and itemise things I want to improve on, do more of and achieve. I have added my examples from this year’s list for you to see and take inspiration from when setting your goals in 2018.
HEALTH
> Do a daily meditation practice
> Cook more homemade, healthy food
BUSINESS
> Create my blog Olivia Kate
> Add 3 new skills to my CV/skillset
LEARNING
> Complete a videography/editing course
> Learn to say no to things I don’t want to do
HAPPINESS
> Hang out with friends that encourage me and my dreams
> Have quality date night once a week
TRAVEL
> Explore the Greek Islands
> Book a city break to Barcelona
The things that you decide to write down do not have to be huge changes like ‘live abroad’ or ‘own a car’, it could purely just be setting intentions. But if you do want to live abroad or own a car, then definitely write that down and set that as an intention within a certain timeframe. Anything you put your mind too is achievable, but a dream is just a fantasy unless you take action. I keep my list in my notes on my phone and also write them down in the first page of my planner. This allows me to refer back to them every month and tick off or amend things as the year unfolds. As the year progresses, so will you and your goals – and that’s completely ok if they change throughout the year.
This year, I would say I ticked off about 80% of my list and I am so pleased that I did. Sometimes, you will not achieve everything you write down, but setting these intentions for every area of your life can really help you to focus, learn and grow. Next year, I am already thinking about my new list of intentions. I have personally struggled this year with that saying ‘there is not enough time in the day’ due to the demands from work, home, trying to pursue a dream, family, friends, money – you name it. So one of my goals is going to be to break this habit! I am going to start pressing pause, to stop and take a moment for myself. To curl up with my favorite magazine or do a meditation and create a little oasis of ‘me’ in my day. And I think it is important that everybody does the same. You might not read a magazine or a do a meditation, you might listen to a piece of music, go for a short walk, watch your favorite Netflix series or go to a yoga class? Wanting a much better work-life balance is definitely going to be one of my intentions for 2018.
So, what are your goals? Do you think this type of planning will help you achieve your goals for 2018? Would you add any more categories? Give it a go! A quick bit of motivation for you that my papa always told me – success will not seek you out, if you truly want success, you will need to work at it, and work towards achieving what you define as success. You can dream about it but you also need to have intentions and focused actions. Success is a process, not a destination, so be sure to celebrate your daily successes, especially the small ones, and the big ones will be sure to show up at the right time!
Olivia x