I know I’m shutting down at least for the last three weeks of the year, if not more.
But this time of year is not to be wasted. Sure we need to enjoy the holidays and use this time to reconnect with friends and family. It’s also a wonderful time to take a break from the office and work responsibilities and look at the personal goals we want to set and reach in the coming year.
It has been said many times, that failing to plan is a plan for failure, and I have certainly found that to be true; professionally and personally. When I do not have a plan for my business I flounder around, get distracted, find something shiny to play with and get very little accomplished. The difference is the Vacation Factor – for me when I am going on vacation, the week before I leave, I am at my most productive. The reason is that the week before I am leaving, I clear off my desk all those niggling tasks that take up more headspace than actual space, because I have made a list of tasks to get done before I leave.
The week before a vacation I don’t allow myself to be distracted by Facebook or YouTube, or that annoying client who just wants to chat – I don’t have the time for it. I want to leave my office with a clean desk so that I can sit back and relax, enjoy the sunsets without a worry and feel that all is right in the world.
So with that in mind, right now is the time to be making those 2017 goals and then enjoy the holidays stress free, and able to hit the ground with a game plan and a renewed sense of joy and purpose in January. Plus, if you set your goals now, you have a chance to let them get set in your subconscious and your mind can be reinforcing them for the next month.
As a man in today’s world we have many stressors on us, and it’s easy to ignore the importance of planning while we’re putting out fires.
But I want to encourage you to take a break from your day to day agendas, and put some time in, thinking about what you want most out of 2017. If you set three very clear, defined goals, you are much more likely to achieve them, than if you set some grandiose goal that is ill thought out, with no real plan of attack, and little effort to back it.
If we take the main areas of our lives and set out definite goals, and we share them with someone or a group, we are much more likely to achieve them. I did that this year, the month before my 50th I decided that I was going to try the Paleo diet for a month and see if I liked the results. I took before pictures, did a weigh in and went public with the information. I did weekly weight check ins, and after a month posted pictures. I made some good progress – but where I really saw improvement was in the level of support I received from friends and family.
By going public, and sharing my journey of diet concerns, I was able to tap into a source of encouragement that I never had before. I learned that many people were following me on Facebook and Instagram and were inspired by my efforts and wanted to share in my diet adventures.
I learned that if we set our goals, and share them, we are much more likely to stick to them. It’s the power of social accountability and encouragement.
We can take that lesson and apply it to other areas of our lives as well.
At this time of year, check in and see what are the goals you want to set for next year? Besides losing that same 25 pounds, is there some other goal that you have? Learning to play the guitar? Want to write a book? (I have a video called How To Write a Book In 10 Easy Years on YouTube you can watch! Date more? Start on that next level belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu? I suggest that you set a goal and get started on it by sharing it. As we accomplish things in life, we tend to continue to accomplish things.
Success breeds success, because you have a better attitude towards trying new things. The more we try, the more likely we are to succeed. So if you have financial, romantic or professional goals, write them down, share them with your best friend and make yourself accountable to someone. That’s why the spiritual maxim of “when any two” come together is so powerful, because there is accountability, and there is faith from friend when our own faith falters.
I know for myself, that many times over the past 3 months I have wanted to give up and just dig in to the breadbasket, order a plate of fettucine alfredo, and have some cake and ice cream for dessert – but I was with someone who knew of my goals, and their presence helped give me the strength to order the chicken and broccoli instead.
If we start now with setting our goals, reinforce them with accountability, and hit the ground running on January 1, 2017 we may find that this time next year, we’re setting bigger and more audacious goals.
Drop me an email at [email protected] to share your goals with me.
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