Planning for the new year is exciting… and it can also feel a bit overwhelming. But it’s all about how you approach it, and this guide will help you plan your goals for the new year with ease.
Let’s break it down in to 5 steps!
5 Steps to plan your goals for the new year
Step 1: List out your goals
Might seem rather obvious, but do you have a list of the goals you want to accomplish over the next 3 months, 6 months, 9 months?
Many people don’t, and so the first step is to give yourself the time and space to sit down and do some brainstorming.
If you’re having trouble coming up with your goals, ask yourself the following questions:
- Why did I start my business?
- How can I help my audience get from where they are right now to where they want to be?
- What do I see myself celebrating 3, 6, and 9 months from now?
Don’t let yourself off the hook, and don’t feel like there is a ‘right’ or a ‘wrong’ answer to any of these questions. The point is that you start brainstorming and really giving your goals some serious thought.
This isn’t an easy exercise, and that’s because the results are a big deal: you declaring your goals is you committing to what’s most important to you in your life right now.
Step 2: Prioritize your goals
Now that you have a list of the goals you want to accomplish over the next 3, 6, and 9 months, it’s time to put them in order of priority.
Which is most important to you right now?
Of course, these are all important to you, otherwise you wouldn’t have set them as goals in the first place. But there has to be a clear order in which you’ll approach your goals for maximum effectiveness.
Step 3: Take inventory
Taking inventory is all about tracking your time and understanding clearly how you’re currently spending it. In order to do this, take a piece of paper and let it follow you around for one week.
Create a column for each day, and throughout that day make a note of what you’re spending your time doing.
- Checking email
- Responding on social media
- Creating branding images
- Nurturing connections
- Coding a landing page
- Setting up a campaign
Nothing is too small or too big to note.
At the end of the week, you’re going to have a lot of tasks on your list; take a minute to really soak it in because this is how you’re spending your most precious resource.
Next, categorize it into daily, weekly, monthly, and 1-time tasks.
Completing this exercise will help you get really clear on the following:
- Tasks you can completely trash (aren’t helping you get closer to the goals you have set)
- Tasks you can delegate (that don’t required you)
- Tasks you can automate (software can help you do them more efficiently)
- Tasks that require you
Now that you’ve taken inventory and have a clear understanding of what’s required of you on a daily, weekly, monthly, and project (1-time) basis, it’s time to create your time blocks.
Step 4: Time blocks
Your time blocks are the days and times you have free to focus on the goals you’ve set.
Given everything you discovered in step 3, start scheduling time during your week – in time blocks of at least 1 – 4 hours – for when you’ll focus on your goal.
Step 5: Start with one
You’ve done a lot of hard work in the first 4 steps, and now it’s time to dive in!
You know your goals, you have them in order of priority, you know exactly how much time you have available to dedicate to them (and you’ve scheduled that time each week in your calendar), and now it’s time to put that plan in place and start with your first goal!
For more details on each of these steps – plus an example of how I used these steps to set a BIG goal for myself heading into the New Year, tune in to this episode on the Kate’s Take podcast!
Next steps: planning for the new year
Now that you have the 5 steps necessary to help you plan your goals for the new year, it’s time to get started.
If you feel a guide to setting and accomplishing goals can be helpful for you on this journey, be sure to check out my season on Goal Setting!
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