I am working on Lara Casey’s 2017 Goal Setting Series. Here is my reflection of Parts 4 & 5 of 5.
- Part 1: Getting Started (Steps 1-3)
- Part 2: Cultivate What Matters (Steps 4-6)
- Part 3: Say Yes, Say No, Choose a Word
- Part 4: Uncover Intentional Goals & Part 5: Make It Happen
PART 4: Uncover Intentional Goals
In Part 4, Lara asked us to review over what we’ve written so far, write out some goal ideas and then check to see if the goal ideas are rooted in what matters most. As she puts it:
The idea here is to SIMPLIFY your life, not to give yourself a new to-do list of random things that sound good. Be intentional about what you decide to spend your time on this year, with your own unique gifts and talents. How you spend your time is how you spend your life. Check each of your goal ideas to see if it’s worth spending your time on.
Read more here.
The sentence “How you spend your time is how you spend your life” really hit me!
I added it to my bullet journal as a reminder. Then I brain stormed and jotted down a long list of things I want to have as goals. I sifted through it and crossed out things that were good but not necessarily right for me in this season of life. I took to heart Lara’s words:
You never know how long you have left here on this earth to love others and use what you’ve been given to grow good things. Life is to short and too meaningful to coast through. The good you do today has the potential to change generations. That’s why uncovering good goals and having a clear focus is so important. Otherwise, you may spend your time lost in distractions. Lost in Instagram. Lost in the chase for perfect, or significance, or approval, or whatever it is that has been holding you back from really living. You may find yourself restless, knowing deep down that there’s more to this life.
Read more here.
Part 5: Make It Happen
Now it’s time to gather all my notes and narrow down my main goals and answer the prompts Lara provides for each goal.
GOAL 1: Nurture my spiritual life and relationship with God. I’ll do this by spending 15 minutes of prayer in the morning and a 10 minute night exam. During the day, turn my mind towards God, converse with him and offer up each chore or little cross for a person who has asked for prayer.
Why? To always have God at the center of my life and to deepen my love for Him. I want his will to be my will and motivation.
The positive effect taking action on this goal may have on my life and others: I will have a stronger and deeper relationship with Our Lord. I will be more aware of the importance of my vocation as a wife and mother. I will be more open and capable or helping out those God has placed in my life.
How will I feel at the end of this year having made progress in this goal: Hopefully, more at peace, grounded in faith and more charitable with others.
Starting steps:
- When I take my morning walk, I’ll listen to the Blessed Is She daily devotion on my iPhone (using the speak text function,) reflect on it, then pray the rosary (or at least a couple decades.)
- During the day when I am doing mundane chores, I will do it in a spirit of love for a special intention.
- In the evening, I’ll reread the scripture of the day that I listened to earlier and write down any thoughts or insights in my prayer journal. I’ll close by doing a short examination of conscience, ask God for forgiveness then thank Him for two things I’m grateful for that day.
How I will know I accomplished or made progress on this goal: Spending time in prayer with God or reading Scripture will come more naturally and not be such a struggle to quiet my easily distracted mind.
Encouraging words: “Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. In all circumstances give thanks, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus.” 1 Thes 5:16-18
How I will celebrate at the end of 2017: I have to think more about this but my first thought was to attend a retreat. I’ll work on this one some more.
GOAL 2: Nurture my marriage with Brian. I will work on this by doing a daily act of kindness for Brian and be faithful to our monthly date nights.
Why? To be a loving wife and show Brian in concrete ways that I love him and appreciate how hard he works for me and the kids. Spending time alone allows us to reconnect, nurture our friendship and helps keep our marriage strong.
The positive effect taking action on this goal may have on my life and others: A stronger marriage, which benefits us and the kids, and a stronger friendship with each other. This especially helps us weather the tough times when they hit.
How will I feel at the end of this year having made progress in this goal: I’ll be a happy wife (which will give the family a happy life.) 😉
Starting steps:
- Read over my 25 Acts of Kindness for Your Husband post.
- Print it out in a size that will fit into my bullet journal.
- Schedule a date night for January using one of the restaurant gift cards we have.
How I will know I accomplished or made progress on this goal: I’ll see “that look” Brian gets when his heart is filled with love for me. (insert blush) 😉
Encouraging words: “The love of husband and wife is the force that welds society together.” – St. John Chrysostom
How I will celebrate at the end of 2017: This seems out of reach but I would love to spend a night away at a nice hotel with Brian.
GOAL 3: Give the kids more one on-on-one time with me in work, play and prayer. This includes after school during homework, play time with me on the weekends and being consistent in our family night prayer.
Why? To be a good mother that loves her kids and spends time with them and is not always “too busy.” I want to teach them about their faith and how to love and serve God in their young lives.
The positive effect taking action on this goal may have on my life and others: A closer family life and an environment of love within our home. (Albeit noisy, but loving.)
How will I feel at the end of this year having made progress in this goal: I’d be happy that I am taking my vocation as a mom seriously and spending more quality time with my kids.
Starting steps:
- Make a weekly meal plan that matches out weekly schedule, such as crock pot meals on days when we have sports or speech therapies. Keep meals simple on those days.
- On mornings when I have more time, do what dinner prep I can (ie. wash the lettuce for salad or chop the veggies for soup) so the dinner making hour is not so hectic.
- On the days we have an easier afternoon schedule, let the kids take turns cooking with me. It sometimes stresses me out but they love it.
- There’s more things popping in my head but I don’t want to overwhelm myself. Baby steps and one step at a time.
How I will know I accomplished or made progress on this goal: More peace in the home, especially in the hectic hours of after school and before dinner.
Encouraging words: “Let us love one another as God loves each of us. And where does this love begin? In your own home. How does it begin? By praying together.” – St. Mother Teresa
How I will celebrate at the end of 2017: Plan an end of the year family outing TBD.
GOAL 4: Cultivate an orderly home run on a balanced budget. Right now I am dealing with two problems – too much spending and too much stuff in our house. I want to simplify and get rid of the things we aren’t using or have outgrown so someone else could use them instead. (Not super easy with my slightly hoarder-ish tendencies.) I also need to curb the impulse spending, which is not helping the clutter situation. It’s a vicious cycle.
Why? To bring order into our home so I am not stressed out by the mess and chaos. To be better stewards of the blessings we have.
The positive effect taking action on this goal may have on my life and others: When things are organized our family life runs so much smoother and there is more peace. We’ll be able to save more when we budget.
How will I feel at the end of this year having made progress in this goal: I am messy by nature but when I force myself to organize, clean, and plan, I am much happier and at peace. I will also be thankful that I have been able to help someone else out by passing on items they could put to good use.
Starting steps:
- Sit down and review our spending over the year. Make a budget based on our spending. Figure out what excess spending we can cut out.
- Make a master list of each room and what decluttering I can do to simplify our home.
- Each week choose a small task to check off the list, even if it’s 10 minutes of dumping junk out of a drawer or driving that bag of baby clothes to the charity drop off. (I chose one thing a week instead of each day because I want to be realistic. If I have a free morning to do more than one, that’s great but not expected.)
How I will know I accomplished or made progress on this goal: I won’t see a pile of junk everywhere I turn. Our checkbook won’t be in the red at the end of the month.
Encouraging words: “Live simply so others may simply live.” – Ghandi
How I will celebrate at the end of 2017: Take some of the money we saved and donate it to a charity we choose as a family.
GOAL 5: To take care of myself physically, spiritually and mentally. I already took care of spiritually, in goal 1. For physically, I want to get into the habit of taking better care of myself through the basics – walking, water, vitamins and better food choices. Mentally – being creative is usually my outlet, whether it is writing a post, taking a photo or decorating my bullet journal.
Why? Physically, I want to be alive and healthy for my children and husband so I can be an active part of their lives as they grow up. I want to be a good steward of the life God has given me and not take it for granted. Mentally, so I can be a happy wife, mother and friend.
The positive effect taking action on this goal may have on my life and others: I will be healthier, physically and emotionally, and have more energy to keep up with my family.
How will I feel at the end of this year having made progress in this goal: Like a new woman. 😉
Starting steps:
- On Monday through Friday, after I drop off the kids at school, take my 30 minute morning walk. If I can’t walk in the morn then do an after dinner walk for 20 minutes.
- Keep my blue water jug with me all the time. Fill it up once in the morn and once in the afternoon to get at least 8 glasses.
- Remove the Christmas cookies and candies from the kitchen so I’ll stop being tempted to nibble on them.
- Put my vitamins in a 7-day container so it is easier for me to take them each day.
- Do one creative act each day, even if it’s just posting a photo to IG or jotting a few ideas down for a future post.
How I will know I accomplished or made progress on this goal: In the evening when I review my planner, I’ll mark off my progress and keep track of how much I walk in my monthly tracker in my bullet journal. By the end of the year, I should see improvements in my general health and energy levels.
How I will celebrate at the end of 2017: Hopefully the healthier habits will also mean some pounds have been lost so I will treat myself to a new Christmas outfit, if it’s in the budget. 😉
Well, there are my 5 goals of 2017! It may seem daunting to someone else but I know I won’t be doing all this at once. I’ll be working on a couple of things and get it down pat before I move onto another step. My minutes, hours and days are going to pass whether or not I act. I may as well get something accomplished while I’m here living. 😉
If you want to take a step in making some goals that suit your life, I strongly encourage you to follow Lara’s series. I’ve heard from so many people that have made progress following her guidance. I believe the Powersheets are sold out now but you can still follow her blog series.
So, what is one thing you want to work on this year? Share it in the comments and I will pray for you and your progress. Please say a pray for me! 🙂
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