Got big New Year’s Eve plans? Mine are pretty tame. Brian and I will have dinner, go see a movie (probably The Hobbit) and be home in time to ring in the New Year with Kathy Griffin and Anderson Cooper. New Year’s Day I’ll probably sleep in a bit (if you can call 7 am sleeping in), make some Vanilla Protein Pancakes for breakfast and do my last Inferno Challenge.
I may spend some time refining my goals for 2013, but they are mostly already set. I get reflective well ahead of New Year’s Day. It starts in December with the simple ritual of figuring out if I achieved what I set out to achieve in 2012. This year I hit 4 of 7 goals:
- Re-certified both with ACSM and ACE.
- Moved into a new (and improved) training space.
- Create a program to offer online (Fitness Foundation – coming soon!).
- Hit my income goal (yeah! I can start saving for retirement again).
What did I miss?
- Still no training apprentice.
- I wasn’t accepted to speak at SXSW Interactive 2013 (but that may not have been a good idea anyway).
- Writing a “training manual” documenting my system for the aforementioned training apprentice.
Reviewing your accomplishments and where you missed the mark is the first part of setting good goals. Always give yourself a huge pat on the back for reaching the goals you set. But then don’t kick yourself for the ones you didn’t. You just haven’t hit them yet. This is a time to reset. Use what didn’t happen, what didn’t get done, as a jumping off point for your new goals.
Here’s my 2013 goal list:
- Find a training apprentice/assistant (most important!).
- Launch the Fitness Foundation program online (did I mention this was coming soon –probably in the summer?).
- Expand my corporate wellness activities with 4 new clients.
- Meditate 4 days a week.
Most of these goals are pretty big, so I will also break them down into more manageable steps. Both these factors – timelines and mini goals – are keys for your success. So is checking in with your goals. Make sure you write them down and check in at regular intervals to make sure you are progressing. Or to make sure your goals still match your life. Perhaps you set a goal to run a half marathon only to realize you hate running. That’s okay. Let that goal go, without shame or guilt. In the process you may have discovered you love yoga more and being able to hold a particularly challenging pose, like crane, may make more sense.
The end/beginning of the year provides a convenient time to set goals but it doesn’t have to happen. I should be done when you are ready to commit to the time and effort it will take to reach your goals. Don’t feel pressured to make a New Year’s Resolution if it doesn’t make sense for you!
How does your goal setting process work? Have you hit some important ones in 2012?
