“Cheers to a new year and another chance for us to get it right.” – Oprah

Goals haven’t always treated me kindly. In fact, for many years I felt pretty defeated by missed goals. Yearly I would sit down and write out big goals: how much money I was going to make, how much weight I was going to lose, and how many books I was going to read. Guess what—in 5 years of working in finance, never once did I achieve all those annual goals.

The day I started achieving my big dreams was the day I left the expectations of others behind. I stopped listening to their list of goals for my life and instead starting listening to my own.

In fact, now I don’t even call it goal setting but instead, think of it as just planning instead!

Intentional living begins with purposeful planning.

This transition in thinking took “goals” from a list of “should-dos” to a much more actionable set of “want-to-do’s”—An action plan for living on purpose.

If you’re inside My Blueprint Year course or using my annual My Blueprint Year planner, you know I create goals (which I define as “outcomes” : the desired end state) in three categories : Personal, Professional and Financial.

My 2019 Goals

Personal :

1. Get physically fit : Daily exercise, eating clean and being mindful of sleep.
2. Self-Care : Quarterly Mental health days, morning and evening routine and “clean” beauty products
3. Nest : Feel “at home” when at home. Create a warm, restful, clutter-free space.

Professional :

1. Build brand awareness : Intentionally pursue brand features, speaking events and create high-quality content
2. Streamline workflows : Team roles, content marketing, all product launches
3. Growth strategy : Prayerfully consider the 5-year vision for the company, team growth, and product development.

Financial :

1. Sales Goal : This year we aren’t creating any new products (*we are finally launching the shop! More on that to come!), and are excited to be the right solution to those who need it.
2. Stewardship : “Break my heart for what breaks yours” is my prayer. Steward company finances well to support our family and those of the team as well as love our community well.
3. Europe : Take a 10-day trip to Europe with Kyle!

Through My Blueprint Year planning process I have six “benchmarks” to keep me on track toward achieving these goals. These benchmarks are how I break my annual goals into monthly action steps and follow the more traditional S.M.A.R.T. goals approach.

I think it’s important these action steps be “checkable” (you can definitely “check” them off a list as definitely complete) to ensure progress toward the ultimate desired outcome.

January Monthly Goals :

Personal :

• Start running again
• Reset Morning & Evening routines
• Finish & Order Kyle’s 2018 Memory Book

Professional :

• Get studio setup and functional
• Streamline team roles
• Write & prep all Q1 content

Financial :

• 2018 books up to date and ready for my accountant
• Finalize payroll setup
• Pray daily over 2019 BPM enrollment

“Big Rocks” | First Things First

• Eat Clean
• Exercise Daily
• Daily Quiet Time & intentional Prayer

BOOKS I’M READING In Q1

For Faith : The Sacred Enneagram

For Fun : The Year of Living Happy

For Professional Growth : Leaders Eat Last Simon Sinek

CREATE MEMORIES

“Making Memories” could be my favorite part of My Blueprint Year planning process. This intentionally reminds me to celebrate and be present. I can tend to fly through my days work work working away and become a one-dimensional business owner instead of whole human.

• Annual Cabin Trip
• Relax in a hot tub
• Go out to a fancy dinner
• Reflect on the past year
• Drink hot chocolate by a fire

Learn my exact step-by-step annual planning process : Meet My Blueprint Year

Related Articles :

• How I stay on track with my goals month-by-month + FREE PLANNING GUIDE DOWNLOAD
• One simple trick to 10x your chances of achieving your goals
• How to calculate your financial need for the year

Your turn!

Do you have goals for 2019 and/or January? Share in the comments below and I’ll pick one of you to send a special surprise box of goodies from past live events! Snail mail is my favorite! And so is staying accountable to our goals!