My yearly planner was sitting at the back of my bookshelf, taunting me with little tinges of guilt. I purposefully left it sitting there unopened for months for one reason: I didn’t want to look at the list of goals I made for the new year… And realize how many of them I hadn’t met six months into the year.
Been there? Sure, a part of me says things like, “hey, you’ve been busy,” or “life is always changing, just forget about those goals. That was six months ago.” Goal-oriented friends, I know you get me though when we say things like that but still feel like it’s just not enough.
So what do we do when we’re months into the year feeling like are goals just aren’t working?
Here’s an invitation to a 6 Month Goal Refresh. If you’re like me and a lot has changed since January and your original goals just aren’t lining up with life now, I encourage you to ditch that long new year’s list and start new. Sometimes we make goals and they just don’t work with where we are in life currently. Just because we aren’t able to meet those goals doesn’t mean we’re failures– it just means we need to hit the refresh button. Let’s do this together!
I. Define what isn’t working.
So I originally had made a goal that by this spring, I would open an online resource shop for photographers (lofty, yes, I know). I had everything all planned out, the email campaigns written, the marketing budget all set to go… But it didn’t happen. There was a part of me that felt like I needed to keep the goal just to complete it, but I’m glad I didn’t. Once I ditched the idea, I was feeling kind of low, and had to ask myself why that goal didn’t work. Really, I discovered didn’t actually have the time or energy to pour into something like that. What I actually wanted was a season of simplicity to enjoy with family. Understanding this helped me define that there was something that just wasn’t working in my life: me choosing lofty goals just because I crave a challenge.
What about you? I dare you to peek at those failed goals and ask realistically why they didn’t work. What are you trying to take on that just isn’t working in your current season? Defining this will help us get to step two.
II. Define your overall desired feelings.
We think we know what we want, but what we don’t often realize is that what we’re really chasing is desired feelings. Think about it. I say that I want simplicity, but why? I want simplicity because I don’t want to feel overwhelmed. I want to feel safe, secure, and loved. Those are my desired feelings, simplicity is just the means by which I think I can get there. Sometimes we have to dig a little deeper under what we’re chasing to figure out why we’re chasing it. What are the feelings that you’re desiring? Knowing this will help us to create goals that aren’t just pulled out of what we think we should do, but what we really need to do to get what we want.
III. Redefine your goals (realistically).
Ok, so if you figured out what your desired feelings are, this makes redefining your goals actually a pretty refreshing and simple process. If all you really want is peace, then your goals should maybe revolve more around rest and spending time on yourself than organizing your house and adding on lots of volunteer projects. When redefining our goals, it’s good to be realistic. Maybe we had some good goals that haven’t had any progress and just need to be reworked a little, not completely thrown away. Give yourself the freedom to cut things out or take the time to really think about how you want to spend the next six months.
Not seeing progress on your goals at six months in doesn’t mean you’re a failure or that you didn’t make good goals. It just shows that there is some room for growth and refreshment to make your life better! Let me know what goals you’re resetting and I might post mine too!
