I am a goal setter, but I don’t limit myself to resolutions only at New Year’s. However, I do annually spend some time at the start of each year reflecting on the year past and pondering what I want to accomplish in the year ahead.
This year, I was intrigued by a novel approach to this task. Author Gretchen Rubin, in the first 15 minutes of this podcast, encourages her listeners to identify “18 for 2018.” https://gretchenrubin.com/podcast-episode/147-happier-identify-18-for-2018
When I heard this idea, I instantly liked it. The number of goals seems daunting, but at the same time, it allows for small, easy-to-accomplish goals in addition to larger, more challenging ones. The point is to write a list of 18 things you want to get done before 2018 ends and put the list in a place you will see regularly, to remind yourself what you want to do and provide a record of what you have done. If you love checking things off a list, like me, this idea should appeal to you, too.
When picking your 18 items, pick some that are small and others that are big, some that can be done once, others you do daily, others you do less often. Make some easy and others harder. Pick some you are eager to do, those you consider fun. Allow a few to be ones you have been putting off but you really want to accomplish. Select goals in all categories: work related, relationship related, home related, and “other.” Mix it up.
Barb’s “18 for 2018”:
Write a blog every week.
Create a video at least once a month.
Give at least 10 speeches during 2018.
Speak to at least one non-nutrition professional audience.
Finish writing nutrition communication book for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
Increase the size of the Nutrition Communicator community.
Clean out my home office files and reorganize file storage.
Take at least one day “off” each month for an adventure with Joe.
Visit a new place.
Upgrade my iPhone.
Find the perfect cross-body purse.
Redecorate the dining room.
Have dinner with extended family each week.
Invite neighbors to dinner in our home once a month.
Host a neighborhood block party.
Enjoy outdoor recreation every day we are in Florida in February.
Try at least 1 new recipe each month.
Get new professional head shots.
What would be on your list? Write them down. Written goals are much more likely to be accomplished than unwritten ones. Take time to make a list and share one or more of your goals in the comments.
“Goals are dreams with deadlines.” Diana Scharf Hunt
