A Creative’s Journey : Week 2

Here it is, late January and I’m just now solidifying my 2017 goals.  I vowed last year that I would get on top of this earlier this year, like in late fall, to get a jump on 2017 yet here I am again.  Anyone else with me?  Do you set goals for yourself and your business?

I’m kinda embarrassed to tell you that last year was the first year I was really intentional with setting goals.  LAST YEAR.  And I’ve been in business for 8 years.  Ouch.  I learned a few things about myself in the process.

1.  Writing a goal down and telling someone about it had me 100% invested in reaching it.  It became real.  It became believable.
2.  I learned that goals have to be specific and measureable.  The goals I had that weren’t, took too long to reach, or didn’t get met at all.
3.  Concentrate on quality, not quantity.  Having 20 big goals became overwhelming vs. having 3 well-thought-out goals.
4.  Review your goals throughout the year!  I put my goals in my work journal and referred to them often last year.  This helped me so much.  It helped me stay focused instead of distracted (most of the time).
5.  It’s okay to tweak your goals!  Maybe something is really working and maybe your experiencing more road blocks with another goal.  What is setting you back?  Lack of time?  Finding the right contact?  Fear?  Procrastination?  Overwhelmed?  Maybe this goal needs to be broken down into baby goals spread out through the year.  A few of my goals that didn’t get much attention I am revising and breaking down for this year.  I am also eliminating some because it’s not a priority for me.

So how do you get started if you’re a procrastinator like me?

Jack Canfield, author of “The Success Principles” says on page 79 that that goal setting has to be SMART, otherwise it’s just a want, a wish, a good idea.  A goal has to be:

Specific
Measureable
Achievable
Realistic
Timebound

Wait, what? Do you feel like I’m kinda backing you into a corner? I know the feeling!  But by making your goal all these things, you spend time to REALLY think about it and you become invested in it, and you KNOW you can achieve it. Try it out!

If you want to do some extra credit, think about where you want to be in your business in 3-5 years.  Dream big!  What would you be on cloud 9 about?  Think it, see it, smell it, and feel it then write down all the specifics.  Then put it up on your mirror or somewhere you’ll see it every day.  I’m in the process of doing a more intense version of this for 2020 with my mastermind group and it’s been a really fun excercise!

And now onto my progress this week:

Scoreboard Week 2:

1. How was I brave this week:  I submitted a proposal to teach some photography classes at a conference – eek!
2. How was I kind this week:  I teamed up with a room parent in Isaac’s class to pull together their class art piece for the school’s auction when another mom was unable to help.  We both feel pulled in about 50 directions but teaming up together and getting it done feels great.
3. How did I fail this week: I did not work out ONCE.  Not once.  I tweaked my back last Friday and it was sore all weekend so I didn’t go skiing, but the rest of the week was a crapshoot.  Now I feel like a big lazy slob.  I rely on running for mental health as much as physical health!

If this post has helped you come up with some SMART goals I’d love to hear them!  Tag your images and stories #acreativesjourney so I can share your story.

XX

Kim