I am still working through my goals for this new year. We had twenty consecutive days of visitors over Christmas and New Years, and Zianne and I have been sick on and off {mostly on} since early December, so my goal-setting process has been slower than I would have liked. However, I am learning more and more that thoughtful, meaningful goals take time. And just because I haven’t written all mine out yet doesn’t mean they don’t exist. I’ve already started working towards some of my goals as I formulate my overall game plan for the year.
Last year, I started using Lara Casey’s goal setting method to help me cast vision for 2014. I cannot tell you how helpful her insight is when planning goals. This year I ordered her Power Sheets and I’m working my way through them, but I thought I would share some of her big goal-setting steps on the blog.
To start with, here are some of my BIG ideas for the year. These aren’t measurable goals but big things I am working toward in life.
-Write/finish dissertation
-Raise Zianne in gospel love and godliness
-Welcome baby #2 with love, joy, and peace
-Invest in my marriage in ways that please the Lord
-Prepare to sell house this summer or streamline it to fit one more human being
-Apply for jobs and trust the Lord with the outcome
-Redesign blog and write more frequently
-Commit to ways of serving our church and our neighbors as a family
-Deepen friendships in Phoenix and make a few new friends as well
And then I took the time to reflect on what did and did not work in 2014.
What worked well:
-Regular exercise
-Bible reading
-House cleaning
-Meal planning and cooking
-Progress with school {portfolio papers, exam, ABD, first chapter of dissertation}
-Serving at church {9:30am service team and Scripture reader}
-Reading for fun {12 books this year!}
-Encouragement notes {finally wrote at least one per month after attempting this goal for three years!}
-Shopping less {and better}
What I learned from what DID work:
-Rhythms work for me. Giving tasks daily, weekly, or monthly time slots is productive.
-If I persist in practicing daily/monthly goals {reading for fun, encouragement notes}, they will become habits.
-I almost always get my top priorities completed. I just need to shift what they are or make room for more.
What didn’t work:
-Not enough sleep {would sacrifice sleep schedule to get things done}
-Haven’t figured out consistent writing time for dissertation
-Didn’t blog as much as I would have liked
-Still want to find new ways to serve in church and community
-Still trying to figure out Sabbath rest
-Not intentional enough about Zianne’s spiritual and mental development
What I learned from what didn’t work:
-My sleep schedule will anchor my schedule for the rest of the day. It’s important!
-I must make dissertation writing one of my daily habits {in the same realm as Bible, exercise, and cleaning}.
-Reward systems work for me. Link productive writing with incentives such as blogging time and social events.
That’s it for now. I will be back in the next few days with my goals for this coming year!
