December is around the corner. The last few months of the year seem to fly by and we seem to have that looming anxiety about the 2017 goals we made at the start of the year. So, have you managed to tick off all the boxes next to the goals? Or an even better question, do you still have the list? Should we still be making year long goals that we seem to forget by mid- January or should we go with the flow?
Having goals and ambitions is not a bad thing at all. It empowers you and drives you more when you know what you are working towards. There is nothing like that feeling when you finally achieve that dream you’ve had for a long time, whether it’s buying that car or getting a promotion at work.
Goals are great and accomplishing them is even better. But what happens when you fall short of your own expectations, or even completely forgot what you wanted to do at the beginning of the year? Does this render the whole year meaningless? I don’t think so!
Right now is actually a great time to take stock of the last 10 months. We always drive ourselves to the ground worrying about what we should have done or could have done, but actually fail to realize what we have actually done. Take a step back and account for your last few months.
Remember the small wins
Remember that amazing project you got to be a part of from start to finish, remember that park- run your friend forced you to join? Our goals don’t have to be these large, wonderful sky- high achievements.
It’s the little things that actually show that you haven’t been chilling all year doing nothing. It was the ability to send out all those job applications, it was standing up for yourself in that meeting, it was the ability to ‘do’ when the world said you couldn’t.
Take stock of what you have managed to achieve
There is definitely nothing wrong in having the grandest dreams about where we should be. However, it is wise to take stock of what you have managed to achieve. This balance is necessary.
Write down a list of your accomplishments so far and stick them up on your fridge or office cubicle. Look at where you have been and how amazing it was. How does this help your mindset for the rest of the year? Well for starters your track record shows that you have accomplishments worthy to be proud of.
You have done some pretty amazing things this year. Appreciate what you have done, appreciate yourself and use it to propel your success even further.
Evaluate your January goals
If you still have your list of January resolutions and none of the items have been crossed off, this may be a good time to consider why you haven’t done the things you promised to do.
Look at what has changed, where were circumstances out of your control? You also have to hold yourself accountable, why did you not go for that promotion or not save for that trip you wanted to take? I don’t recommend this to make you feel bad, Motherland Mogul, but if we do not ask ourselves the hard questions who will?
It’s also about considering the shifting priorities and incentives. If the year did not go how you thought it would, how did you respond to that? What did you have to change to accommodate your different reality? This will help you re-evaluate your goals for the rest of the year based on what you know, as well as help you manage your expectations.
Consider how you can add to what you have already accomplished earlier in the year
Looking back is an amazing way to create motivation for what feels like both the longest and shortest year. Also, your achievements so far can help you plan for the last 2 months of the year. Consider how you can complement what you have already done earlier in the year.
Maybe you could come up with another project that takes the previous one to another level. Maybe you could motivate a friend to join you for that park- run. Look at where you have been and where you want to go, what could you do to bridge that gap? Create new goals for these last two months, what do you want to do that could make the last part of the year exciting and different for you?
Create weekly and monthly goals for these last 2 months
One of the great ways to avoid this looming anxiety about not achieving your big goals, is to actually create weekly or monthly goals. This helps you create goals for the reality you actually are in, not what you thought the year would be like.
This is important because achieving and celebrating the small things can really motivate you to push for the bigger goals. Writing down and shaping smaller goals is more realistic. You are holding yourself to attainable goals, founded on what’s happening here and now.
So, what have you done this year to be proud about?
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