Rocking 2023!
The hands of the clock have just been once again moved and we have journeyed with it into a new year, a year of great adventure and amazing discoveries. What will be your greatest achievement for the year? How do your planning notes and decision journal for this year appear? Clumsy? Clear vision-oriented? or Full pages, inked in dependencies and ‘may-be’ clauses? Whichever category they fall under, here are few suggestions while you etch your plan for the year out on a screen, paper or surface of your choice.
Set goals in reality: Forget about the mountainous ideas and motivations of the likes of ‘whatever you can set your mind to do, you can achieve it’. Even though those ideas stand as true, however, when they are placed in the sphere of unreality and falsehood, they fail to work for the professing party. Thus, in place of setting unrealistic goals, endeavor to plan with a realistic mindset in the absence of examples of goals like walking on the moon by July when you have not even set a foot out of your current community, saving a billion dollars when in reality you can save a little over 5,000 – 10,000 dollars with strong determination, discipline and persistence. Setting realistic goals reduces your chances of looking over your notes mid-way through the year and catching a quick pump in your blood pressure.
Develop practical means to achieve your goal: Without a plan, anything goes and when anything goes, direction is bound to be missed or mixed up. Thus, backing up set goal(s) with well-thought plans is a great way to have a perfect road map to the desired destination of the set goal. Do not be a stranger this year to critical thinking, analysis and reasoning because when critical thinking, analysis and reasoning are thrusted or thrown out of the picture in goal setting and realization, a spacious room for disappointment and self-blame is created and occupied in the end.
Work: Planning and forgetting or discarding the plan afterwards yield no fruit. It is just like the situation where a seed will not plant and grow itself when you hold it in your hands all day and year long. Simply put, a plan cannot lead to a goal in the absence of action. Thus, efforts, action and working with set plan are necessary for reaching desired destination.
Keep discipline in sight: No true achievement comes in the absence of discipline. Thus, going to wipe off a zero from that 10,000 dollars savings goal because you have the idea of going for an untimely and unneeded shopping spree or making a careless and unimportant spending decision would definitely result in an end of the year regret episode. Stick to the plan and keep it rolling.
Avoid being a famous ‘pleaser’: Thinking that you have to adjust certain things or decisions because you would want to please the next person does not always turn out well. Sometimes, you have to say the big ‘NO’ in order to stay focused on your plan and reach your goal. The idea is not to become a sadist with no human feeling or empathy, rather, options should be checked, as well as level of importance and consequences weighed prior to effecting adjustments on your plan.
Enjoy your journey: Every day and hour move us through our journey in each year. Lessons can be taken up on the way, however, appreciation of every step is important in having the best experience of the year. Enjoying oneself does not necessarily mean eating the most cheesy meal, wearing the most expensive outfits or having the most luxurious lifestyle. Appreciation/gratitude still remain the key words in enjoying our journey this year.
Pay attention to YOU: This is all about creating a balance. While we work towards achieving our goals, we should also take out time to take care of ourselves in the best and affordable ways possible, paying attention to health, psychological, social and spiritual needs. This helps us go through the year being whole and balanced despite the challenges and rough paths.
It is indeed a year with lots of room for great learning, growth and achievements. I look forward to hearing your exciting adventures and great success stories this year!