New month, new goals – how to set monthly goals and succeed

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1st September has always been a symbol of new beginnings since I can remember. This date marks the end of holidays and the start of something new, a new school year, new friendships, new experiences.

Now, when I don’t have to go to school anymore, I like to spend some time around this date and revisit my New Year’s goals and resolutions. Checking what progress I’ve made and setting new goals for the rest of the year has been really helpful in staying productive and motivated all year round. 

New month, new goals – there’s nothing better than starting a new month with a plan. Let’s go!

Why goal tracking is important and how to do it?

It’s very easy to set a goal and forget about it. Do you remember your New Year’s goals? If you do, then congratulations! Otherwise, think about what went wrong. Did you forget to write them down, lost the list or don’t believe in setting yearly goals altogether?

Setting goals and checking the progress you’ve made is the best option to stay productive and move forward. Imagine wanting to get more active and deciding on doing at least 10,000 steps a day. How would you check your progress without a smartwatch and daily statistics? Would you be able to do that with no notes? I don’t think so.

Seeing your goal written, tracking progress and checking boxes can also be a great motivator. When you see how much you’ve already done, you’re more likely to stay motivated and keep working towards your goal. It will also allow you to plan better and make time for goal related tasks.

That’s why it’s so important to keep track of your goals. Here are two different ways of doing it:

• You can start by simply writing them down in your journal or use a brand new notebook for that. You know, new month, new goals, new beginnings.
• If you want to go paperless and have easy access to your notes, no matter where you are, use spreadsheets. Google Sheets are perfect for that.
  
  

RELATED ARTICLE: Can’t decide whether or not you should go paperless? Here are 3 awesome reasons why you should switch to paper.

New month, new goals, new strategy

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Once you decide on how you’re going to make your notes, it’s time to work on a strategy. 

Find an accountability partner

The best thing you can do is find an accountability partner who will help you stay on track and will call you out when you start slacking and making excuses to stay in bed all day and watch Netflix. Anyone can be your accountability partner: your best friend, boyfriend, or even your mum. Choose someone who you trust the most and don’t be afraid to ask for help! Who knows, you might motivate them to set up some new goals too. 

SMART goals

Another thing you can do is using the method called SMART goals. The acronym stands for:

S – Specific,

M – Measurable,

A – Achievable,

R – Relevant,

T – Time-bound.

Let’s dive in!

Specific

You need to know what you’re working towards. If your goal isn’t specific, you will have a hard time reaching it because you don’t know exactly what you want. Simply “I want to write a blog” isn’t as powerful as “I want to inspire others to read more books because it’s great for learning new language”. It also doesn’t really say anything, because you haven’t specified what you want to write about, why, or for who.

Knowing why you want to pursue your goal helps you to set goals not just for the sake of it, but to really change your life for the better. So, why do you want to do that? Why is this goal important to you?

To get more specific on your goal, answer these questions:

• What do I want to accomplish?
• Why is this goal important?
• Who is involved?
• Where is it located?

Measurable

You need to have a goal that’s measurable to track your progress. Only this way, you’ll be able to stay focused, meet your deadlines and check if you’re getting closer to reach your goal or if you’ve been faking productivity all the time.

To check if your goal is measurable, ask yourself how you’ll know when you achieved it. How much time will you need it to accomplish your goal?

For example, your measurable goal might be to prepare yourself for the driving test. To achieve your goal, you need to take five more driving lessons and it will take you two weeks. 

Achievable

Your goal needs to be realistic and should depend only on you. That’s why “passing a driving test” isn’t an achievable goal because the examiner’s decision will influence the outcome. Instead, you can set a goal to take more driving lessons and prepare for the exam as much as you can.

To check if your goal is achievable, ask yourself how you can accomplish this goal and how realistic it is. Is it completely in your power to get the results you want, or someone else can influence it? Can you afford these additional driving lessons in order to reach your goal?

Relevant

Everything you do should align with your life vision and the same goes for your goals. You need to make sure that they’re relevant and they affect you, and the world around you, in the right way. There’s no point in chasing someone else’s dreams and goals because they look good or fancy. Pause for a second and think about what you really want, what’s your life vision, what you’re working towards in overall, and check if this goal you’re about to set aligns with it.

Ask yourself whether it’s worth it and if it’s the right time to go for it. It might turn out that you don’t have enough time because you’re in a very busy season of your life or money is tough and you need them in order to reach your goal.

Time-bound

Every goal needs an end date. You won’t be able to make a plan and track your progress properly without it.

For example, your goal might be to lose 3 kilograms before the end of the month. You have a set date to focus on, and something to work towards. This way, you can track your progress and check if you’ll be able to accomplish your goal. Setting an end date will also motivate you to make time to work on your long-term goals every day.

Prioritize your goals

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Now that you know why you should track your goals, how to do it, and what your strategy should look like, it’s time to choose a goal for this month.

Sit down for a few minutes and close your eyes. Imagine your dream life, think about where you’re now. Make a list of all goals and dreams that came to your mind and write all of them down, no matter how small, big, or silly they might be. Choose those you’re the most excited about and then check which one is the SMART goal. Don’t rush with it. Your goal should be meaningful, not to be set for the sake of it.

New month, new goals – what’s the plan?

So now you know why you should track your goals, what’s your strategy and which goal you want to pursue. What’s next? Creating the plan, of course!

Habits and routines make sure that you stay on track and keep working towards your goal every day. Your stress is reduced because you know exactly what steps you need to take tomorrow instead of winging it and trying to figure out what you need to do.

Remember to use timelines to determine if you’re on track to meet your deadline. If it looks like you will not meet it, ask yourself what happened, where you’re slacking and what you can do to change that. Sometimes life happens and it might turn out that you won’t be able to finish your goal on time, no matter what. And that’s okay too. The key is to be flexible and do as much as you can without neglecting your friends, family, or mental health.

Routines aren’t set in stone and it’s often a trial and error before you find what’s working for you. Don’t be afraid of making any changes.

New month, new goals, new mindset

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Mindset is a powerful thing. Very often, working towards your goal includes working through limiting beliefs you may encounter. They’re those little, pessimistic thoughts and opinions that you might think they’re true. Believing in them can be a reason you’re giving up so quickly every time you try something new.

Find an affirmation that will help you overcome self-sabotaging negative thoughts. For example, if you think you can’t do something because it’s too difficult, your affirmation might look like “I can do this. I’ll find a solution for any problem I encounter.” 

Monthly check in with yourself

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You’ve set a goal and worked really hard during the last month. So now what? It’s a great idea to schedule a check-in with yourself at the end of each month to reflect on the previous month and prepare for the new one. It’s important not only to reflect on your monthly goal and progress you’ve made, but also to check what went wrong and how you can improve next time. Check-in meeting with yourself should also include setting a plan for next month and, of course, choosing a next goal.

Remember that this is a non-judgemental zone and you’re not doing it to feel ashamed of making mistakes and not achieving your last month’s goal on time. Summarize what went wrong, think about any roadblocks you’ve encountered and try to come up with the idea of how to do better next month.

Here are a few questions that will help you with your monthly goal check in.

Step 1: Summarize and reflect on your monthly goals

• What goals did you set for this month and why did you choose them?
• What progress have you made?
• If you have made no progress, why? Does this goal still align with your vision? Is it because you haven’t felt like making a move towards it or you decided that it’s not a priority right now? Go as deep as you need to.

Step 2: Check your current situation

• Is there anything that sucks up your energy?
• What is stressing you right now? What occupies your mind most of the time?
• Are there any changes in your daily routine or in your life?
• Is there anything that doesn’t align with your vision but you keep doing it?
• Have you committed to do something this month but don’t have time for this anymore?

Step 3: Make changes

• What changes do you need to make in your routine to reduce stress and save time?
• Do you need to change your routine and habits based on the season you’re in?
• Can you delegate some of your daily tasks to reduce the workload?

New month, new goals, motivational quotes!

Here are few more motivational quotes affirmations for you to pin, save or use as a phone wallpaper.

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