Make it your Best Year Yet.
As we head into a new year it’s a great time to sit with yourself and reflect on how this year compared with your idea of what you thought it might be last January. Most people use a new year to make changes they want to see in their lives. Whether you are a seasoned pro at goal setting or trying it for the first time the steps are exactly the same. You can use this free worksheet we have created to help you get started with goal setting today.
What is a SMART Goal Setting?
Using the acronym SMART helps us organize our ideas in a way that turns wishes and dreams into real actionable goals. SMART Goals are Specific, Measurable, Agreed, Realistic and Timed. Let’s break down each one to help us understand how to get started.
First Step Be Specific
First, a goal of yours may be to exercise more this year. Instead of setting a goal to exercise each day which is too broad of an idea, think about what exercises you actually might do. Be very specific. You might do some research to learn what specific exercise would help you tone your arms as an example. The research my lead you to a 1 hour workout plan that targets that area. You now have a specific goal. I want to tone my arms.
How will you Measure your Success?
Think now about how you will measure your success. Will you literally measure your arm to see if you lose or gain inches? Will you know you have succeed when you can see definition in your arms? What ever you choose make sure you have a way to measure your results.
A good goal should be something achievable
Next, it must be something achievable What does that mean? If your goal is to tone your arms and you will measure your arms once per week to measure your loss or gain of inches and you commit to performing this exercise 10 times per day, that may not be achievable (plus your arms may fall off, LOL). However, you can agree that completing the 1-hour workout 5 times per week is possible and therefore is an achievable goal.
Don’t stop here with Goal Setting
To complete the SMART analysis of your goal the goal also needs to be Realistic. You may not have the ability to have arms that look like they were chiseled out of stone. Don’t let someone else idea of perfectly sculpted arms derail your progress. Instead, keep your goal realistic. You may find photos online of people with your similar body shape that have tone, well defined arms and that can help you reference what you are looking to achieve. Keeping a vision board in front of you also helps you stay on track to achieve your goals.
Scheduling is KEY in Goal Setting
And finally, be sure to set Timed millstones for yourself. Schedule this workout each day at a specific time and commit yourself to keep that appointment. Measure yourself in equal intervals to help you stay on track. You will gain momentum and enthusiasm as you start to see the results you want. Sometimes they are such small changes in the beginning that if you were not measuring them you wouldn’t see the change. If you are unable to fit the workout into your schedule each morning, you may have to adjust to an afternoon or evening appointment. Whichever you decide make it easy for yourself to show up and do it.
Having a Health and Wellness Coach takes your Goal Setting to the next Level.
If you follow these steps with any goal you will find that you get to direct the activities that accomplish your goals instead of the activity directing you. A carefully chosen SMART goal can help you end the cycle of failure around New Year resolutions. Need help deciding on what goals you should focus on? It’s not always clear what we want our end goal to be. That’s where coaching comes in. Schedule a Discovery Session with me HERE to get the help you need to make 2023 your best year yet.