Every year, people look to the new year as a time to make changes that they have been meaning to make in the previous 365 days.

Somehow, when the clock strikes 12:00 AM and the day turns into January 1, our entire mindset changes and for some reason, the power to reset that has been within us, all along, somehow magically comes out, empowering us to act.

When the clock strikes, bringing in the new year, the plans that some of us began making around November of the previous year, and for some even earlier months, all of sudden gets kicked into gear. We all get in, Go Go Go mode and must Do Do Do now.

As mums, we make plans for ourselves (I hope), plans for our family, plans for every activity or hobby we are involved in. We plan, plan, plan.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m a planner and I like planning 😁.

But…

My only concern with planning is with the sustainability of our plans and resultant actions.

How long will they last? Will we be able to keep them up the whole year, half the year, quarter of the year, or just a few weeks?

TIMESLINES ARE IMPORTANT!

As we kick-start this new year, let’s not just Go, Go, Go and Do Do Do without some sense of time or deadlines calculated into our actions.

Let’s execute, and implement but let’s do all this following pre-set timelines.

If U are guilty of making plans or ‘To-Do This Year’ checklists but didn’t add that all important section that reads ‘by this date’  next to it, it’s not too late.

Go to your phone, calendar, dry-erase board, journal,…whatever you’re using to keep track of your progress and wherever U originally outlined the plans. Go there, add dates and take this much needed step that will help U to hold yourself accountable.

Also, schedule frequent check-ins and updates with yourself for your plans, goals and intentions. Depending on your desires, you may need weekly, monthly, or quarterly check-ins. The point of check-ins is so that U constantly remind yourself of the original goals. Give yourself updates on what U have done, versus, how much still needs to be done. Also, check-ins will give U  an opportunity to make changes as needed.

Because we are human, which means nothing is ever set in stone and we reserve the power to change our minds at anytime, it’s a good practice to revisit what we originally wrote down.

REVISIT THE WRITTEN PLANS DURING CHECK-INS

As U check-in and revisit, do so with the mindset of evaluating:

1. How are the planned things going?
2. What changes are needed, if any?
3. What factors have affected the original plans that U saw coming? What factors completely blind-sided U?
4. How can U move forward in spite of the unexpected or predicted challenges?

As we know, change is constant, and we certainly can’t control everything. As such, we must not only plan, and act, but we must remain flexible, and prepare to adapt as needed. Circumstances change, needs change, desires change, and WE change. The important thing is that we always make time to reflect, evaluate, and adjust as needed. In the end, any pivot that eventually gets us to our goal is never time-wasted but lessons learned along the way.

NEVER GIVE UP!

Wishing U well in this new year. I know that you’ll make a ton of progress on your goals, and that you’ll do it in a timely, most efficient manner because you’ll use all the elements discussed in this blog post and seek out whatever resources U need to get U on your way and keep U on your path to success.

As always, feel free to share your comments below. Take Care!