New Year’s is always the time reflect on the past year and look ahead to the New Year.  I seem to always spring clean over New Year’s and this year was no different – especially with 4 days in a row to do it!!

So what goals did you set for yourself in 2016?

Where are they?  Are they in your head?  Are they now buried under a pile of paper (if you even wrote them down)?  Have you thought about the processes and the steps necessary to reach those goals?  Follow these 7 tips to help you reach your goals!

1. What are your goals?  Write them down.  But don’t just write them down and file them away.  Keep them visible where you can see them.  I’ve ordered a huge erasable wall calendar to keep things front and center.  Be specific with each goal/resolution.  If you want to lose weight, how much?  What’s your deadline?  If it’s to obtain more clients, how many?  If it’s to make more money, how much?  By when?
2. Why do you want to reach these goals?  What are the benefits you’ll see?  Write those down, too.  If you want to lose weight, maybe it’s so you’ll fit into your clothes, be healthier, be the envy of all the girls or guys, or just look great.  If it’s to reach a specific dollar amount in your business, what will you do with that money?  Is there a greater purpose?  Do you have a non-profit you’d like to support?
3. What are the steps necessary to achieve your goal?  To lose weight, you might walk three days a week, change your diet, go to the gym two days a week, or join Zumba class.  If it’s building your business, what steps do you need to take to achieve that goal?  Perhaps it’s time to hire support and delegate some tasks or hire professionals to help you uplevel your business.  Maybe you’re going to do some local networking or Facebook advertising or even get started with social media.
4. What actions are necessary for each of the above steps?  If you’re wanting to lose weight, you might need to research gyms or Zumba classes, learn better nutrition, decide what days, where and how far you’ll walk.  For your business building goal, investigate networking organizations in your area, create your Facebook ad, decide on a budget, educate yourself on social media, or hire someone to help you with it.
5. Schedule the action items into your calendar.  As entrepreneurs, it’s easy to fall into the realm of taking care of everyone else’s needs and letting our own fall to the wayside.  Treat yourself as a client and put the time in your calendar to work towards your goals.
6. Have someone you’re accountable to.  It’s tough trying to reach these goals alone, so don’t do it by yourself!  You could hire a coach.  Or do you have someone you can count on to give you a good kick in the butt when you need it?  Ask them to hold you accountable for taking the actions and steps necessary to really reach your goals! I am part of a group coaching program where I have an accountability buddy that I talk to every morning at 8:30.  We go through our 3 action items we want to get done that day and whether we met the previous day’s action items. There have been many evenings where I’ve thought, “Oh, I didn’t get that done today, but I talk to Kathy tomorrow and I’m going to get it done now because I don’t want to tell her I didn’t do it.”
7. Don’t be too hard on yourself.  If you miss a goal or fall off the diet wagon, get back up and keep going.

Take some time right now and get your pen and paper out and work through the process and TAKE ACTION!  An idea not coupled with action will never get any bigger than the brain cell it occupied.  Arnold Glasow