Summer’s here, and we are well into the 7th month of the year. These first six months have whizzed by, and now is the perfect time to pause for a midyear check-in. How’s 2022 going for you so far?   What you were thinking and feeling in January 2022 might be completely different now as things may have changed in your personal life, and with so much happening globally, a change in direction is to be expected.  

When we welcomed in 2022, did you take some time to reflect on 2021 and set some goals for the new year? Can you access them easily? I’m glad that I always write mine out on a word document; otherwise, I would probably not find my list and forget some of my goals. 

If you did set some intentions for 2022, take a look at them and ask yourself these questions: 

• Have you accomplished any of your goals, or are you still working towards them?

• Do they still matter?

• Do any of them need adjusting? 

• Do you have any new goals that weren’t on your radar earlier in the year? 

• Did you make too many goals?

Once you’ve spent some time reviewing them, decide whether you will keep them, tweak them and ask yourself how they make you feel?  Are you passionate and excited about them? Or are they uninspiring and make you groan? You are more likely to commit to your goals if they fire you up. 

Wouldn’t it would be fabulous if all you had to do was name the goal, and it would materialize? How easy life would be. Unfortunately, all goals require a plan and action. Without direction, dreams will remain in the ethers of your mind, and may remain there forever if you don’t do something. 

Are your actions aligned with your goals?

For example, if one of your goals for 2022 was to focus on your health and well-being because you haven’t been feeling your best, have you aligned your actions to address these things? If you continue to desire well-being but haven’t had a physical for years, your diet and sleep are poor; you’re not moving, spending too much time on your devices, or drinking too much, then you haven’t aligned your actions with your goal. 

Or let’s say you decided earlier in the year that you wanted to get a handle on your finances, clear up any debt, have a plan, and think about your retirement. If you haven’t filed your taxes for years, ignore your bills, have no idea where your money is going or know your credit rating, then your actions are not aligned with your goal.

I’ve struggled with my self-care goals this year, and if this pattern sounds similar to you, you have to dig deep to find a way to motivate yourself to follow an action plan that will work for you. Setting a goal is easy, but the action part is very challenging. The deep dive involves connecting to the part of you that is stronger than the excuses:

I can’t do this.

I don’t feel like it.

I don’t want to.

It’s too hard.

I don’t have the time.

You don’t understand.

I find it helpful to think about the whys of any goal. If I want to be healthy, what are my whys?   I want to feel good, have more energy to engage in what I love, improve my mood and sleep, live longer, and prevent disease.

It’s also helpful to break them into steps if you have big goals. Wanting to improve your finances is a big goal that will require smaller steps like organizing your finances, figuring out what is coming in and going out, and making sure your taxes are up to date. Then work on a budget.  

My goal list was short this year:

Self-care is my #1 priority.

My self-care action plan has been in disarray for months. I felt like I had too much to do to care for myself and ensure that our fur babies were well taken care of, especially Peggy, our senior dog. I did nothing for a few weeks, which made me feel worse. I tried numerous arising times and, through lots of trial and error, finally came up with a schedule that ensured I meditated every morning, took Peggy for a long walk, hit the gym, and practiced yoga 3-4 times per week. I’ve been getting up at 5:30 am every morning for the last three weeks (except for the previous two days because Peggy was sick). I’m not a morning person, and initially, it was hard, but I adjusted and now feel good that I’m taking good care of myself and my girls.  

Read one book a month.

I’ve read one book since January and obviously I haven’t accomplished this goal. I love to read, and it’s important to me, so I need to figure out what’s going on with this goal.

Play chess with Ben once a week.

Playing chess is something that I think will be good for my brain since I have some cognitive challenges. I don’t know how to play, and so far, I’m not very good at it, and Ben has been destroying me. We haven’t played for at least two months, and I dread it because I find it hard. So maybe this is a goal to let go of, at least for now.

If you aren’t a goal-setting kind of person, can you at least think of how you would like 2022 to end? If you did make some 2022 goals and they no longer resonate for you, that’s ok. You’re taking a detour and need to create a new plan, no different than if you drive from point A to point B and come across miles of construction or the road or bridge is closed. What do you do? You turn around and plan a new route. 

I’ve worked for numerous organizations that used SMART to set goals and objectives. SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-bound. I found it a great tool, and you may find it helpful.   Here is a template that you can print off.  SMART template

You must ensure you own your time and not allow your time to own you.  Whenever I think I don’t have time for the things that are important to me, it’s sometimes the case, but most often, if I’m being honest with myself, I waste time on too much binge-watching or going down some google search or social media rabbit hole. 

What kind of a future life do you want? To change your life, you need to create goals and action plans that you are connected and committed to.

You also must accept and know that you deserve to live the life of your dreams. 

Be well.

Anita