How I Set My Annual Goals

Photo by photosteve101

It’s so easy to let a new year get away from you. By February, I’m already settled back into old habits and ruts. I want to fight this!

I take an evening and set up some bold but attainable goals, thinking purposefully about the upcoming year.

I follow the format of Chris Guillebeau‘s awesome annual goal setting posts.

This is fun, motivating, and helps ensure that I’m growing every year!

Big Areas

Start with 3 – 7 areas in your life where you’d like to do something new. I’ve borrowed some from Chris, and added a few of my own.

1. Health
2. Travel
3. Learning
4. Friends/Family
5. Byrdseed
6. Family Finances

Create Goals

Then, in each area, create a handful of goals. Remember, you have a whole year to accomplish these, so think big! And don’t worry if these are vague, we’ll focus them in the next step. Here are a few of my areas broken out:

Health

As I enter my mid-30s, I know I’ve got to work harder to stay healthy.

• Run more
• Only eat out on special occasions
• Attend Yoga with my wife

Learning

This is a fun one! What do you want to learn this year? Painting? A new language? Computer programming? Make it official!

• Improve my Spanish
• Read more books
• Go on cultural outings with Mrs. Byrd
• Watch classic films with Mrs. Byrd

Friends and Family

Now that my wife and I both work from home, it’s easy to lose touch with old coworkers and friends. We want to change that!

• Host get-togethers
• Babysit nieces/nephews and friends’ kids
• Visit my friends’ classrooms

Byrdseed

Of course I have lots of goals for my business. It helps so much to get them written down and official.

• Host a few Byrdseed mini-events
• Write a book
• Re-organize byrdseed.com posts
• Make a shirt, bag, or stickers with my new logo
• Exhibit at more conferences

Here’s a look at the original first draft of these goals:

Focus!

Focus your goals by adding time limits, hard numbers, or specific details.

• “Read more” becomes “Read 36 books.” That’s 3 a month; much easier to track my success now!
• “Host get-togethers” becomes “Host a dinner once every two weeks on Friday nights.” Now we can put this on our calendar and make it happen.
• “Run more” becomes “Run an official 10k by May.” A timeframe is an awesome way to kickstart a new habit.

First Steps, Next Actions

What is the first baby step you can take to move towards each goal? It should be super easy…

For “Read 36 Books”:

1. Pick ten books from Goodread’s Best Of 2014 Lists and 100 Books To Read Before You Die that seem interesting.
2. Visit the local library and check out as many as possible.
3. Set a nightly reminder on my phone to read 30 minutes each evening.

For “Run a 10k by May”:

1. Set up a 10k training program on my Nike+ Running app.
2. Search Google for a 10k in March or April.
3. Sign up for the run!

For “Go on one cultural outing per month”:

1. Search museums in LA for interesting exhibits.
2. Find plays at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts.
3. Check the Pacific Symphony‘s schedule.
4. Put dates down in our family calendar.

Make It Happen!

It is incredibly motivating to get these written down. And, as each goal becomes more specific, I get even more excited!

I can see my year shaping up to be something meaningful.

And, hey, I know I won’t get it all done, but I bet I’ll accomplish at least half of these goals in 365 days. And that’s better than having no plan at all.

Let me know what you come up with: ian@byrdseed.com!