Chances are you set goals for yourself at the beginning of the year (or perhaps you got a jumpstart on this at the end of 2014). Now you find that April is nearly over, which means that we are almost a quarter of the way through the “new year”. When did that happen?! Realizing how much time has passed, you reflect on the goals that you had so lovingly and passionately set for your life back in January. If you are anything like me, you settle into a slight panic.
I’m nowhere near where I thought I would be by now!
At this point you can do one of three things:
- You can give up on your goals. You decide that too much time has passed and that you will never be able to catch up. It was a nice dream while it lasted.
- You can push forward with your goal, blindly, without taking into consideration whether anything needs to be tweaked.
- You can assess your goal, determine if anything needs to be adjusted, and move forward with a renewed sense of passion and purpose.
I suppose you can tell which category I recommend.
I actually recommend that you take time regularly to look at your goals and track your progress. By doing this, you can determine whether you are still on track towards your goals, if you need to change the path that you are on, or if you need to completely switch gears. This may involve letting go of some goals and focusing on others. That is ok! Sometimes we need to switch focus in order to get where we need and want to be in life.
One thing that I have been learning as I get older is that sometimes the things that we want (and need) in life change. Goals change. Priorities shift. When I graduated from undergrad in 2008, my goal was to take a year off and then go on to pursue my masters and my doctorate in counseling psychology. Then I became a mother. Many of my priorities shifted. Instead, I decided to put off my formal education once I attained my masters in Educational Psychology and I am focused on raising my son, homeschooling him, and working as a freelance writer (which has been my dream career for as long as I can remember). My goals changed, so my action plan has changed as well.
Don’t be afraid of change. Embrace it and make it work for you. If you have setbacks on your path towards your goals, take some time to figure out a path over or around that obstacle and then get on it!
As they say…
Tiffany has been blogging for nearly 5 years. It started out as a hobby but has transformed into a business. She is the owner of the blog Single Mommy Warrior where she blogs about her life as a single WAHM. In fact, her blog is a large part of why she has been able to work from home since 2012. Tiffany’s mission is to motivate others to live their lives by design, not by default. You can follow her blog at www.singlemommywarrior.com
Good advice! I’ve been taking stock and regrouping.