Back-to-School Means Back to Goals

Everyone is back in school at my house and now it’s time for me to get back to work on accomplishing my goals.

We’re more than halfway through 2013. It’s about this time of year that I really start re-evaluating the goals I set back in January (I don’t do resolutions. I do set goals to accomplish each year, though I usually set them around my birthday in November, because it’s the time when I re-evaluate my life, see where I’ve been over the last year and check to make sure I’m still headed in the right direction).

I know most people set goals/make resolutions/decide to change in January but I find that I am more successful in implementing change and new goals in my life when it’s back-to-school time than I do in January.

Maybe it’s because January is just the time when we buy new calendars and change the date on our checks or because this time of year really is a time of new beginnings, with the new school year starting—and because the school calendar has pretty much ruled my life since I started kindergarten when I was four years old.

This has been an interesting summer, full of unexpected twists and turns. I finished a huge project that has dominated my life for over a year (and I am oh, SO happy!), I made the decision to defer another project that I was really looking forward to until some family complications made it immensely complicated and not in our family’s best interest right now. At the same time, that has given me the opportunity to finish writing a book I started nearly a decade ago. I am really looking forward to getting back to this project.

In addition, I have a couple other projects I’ve been working on, including a new business venture involving photography. I hope to have it ready to launch by my birthday in November. All of the family changes here have also given me time to really think about my business model and what does and doesn’t work for me. As part of my review, I’ll be really analyzing all the parts of my business and making decisions about what should stay and what should get outsourced.

I’m a compulsive goal setter and list maker. For me, it doesn’t happen if it isn’t written down somewhere. My head is full of ideas with new ones making their appearance all the time, so if I don’t write things down, they get lost in the void up there.

Since I’m in re-evaluation and goal-setting mode, I thought we might make this journey together. I’d love to know what your focus is right now.

Over the next month or two, I’ll be posting on the goal-achieving process so we can achieve success together.

You thought I’d say goal-setting, didn’t you? Almost everyone is good at goal-setting. We come with an idea (like losing 10 pounds) and then we decide we’re going to do it or write in down or something. And then about 6 months later, we do it again. Same 10 pounds, same goal-setting exercise. Clearly, there’s more to this than just setting a goal.

So, I hope you’ll join me for this journey, whether your goal is to lose 10 pounds, redecorate the basement or just figure out how to set a goal and actually make it all the way to accomplishment.

In the meantime, tell me what your goal challenges are? What parts do you have a hard time with? What’s particularly easy for you? Let me know what you need help with and we’ll set and achieve some great goals together this fall.