Why we fail to achieve goals & how to rock the new year

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Why we fail to achieve goals…ever wonder that?

I whispered this prayer on a Saturday morning in early December, seeking to prioritize my new year goals:

Father, I thank you for what I’ve endured this year, because you’ve shown me where to start next year.

The first reason we fail to achieve goals

If you’re like me, you’ve got plenty of aspirations, but you also have a hard time deciding which one needs the most attention.  You jump from project to project and fail to achieve goals because of FOMO.

FOMO:

Fear

Of

Missing

Out

This occurs with home renovations, positive reinforcement with kids, and personal goals.  It happens in the areas of finance, quality friendships, and side jobs.  We have all kinds of ideas, but can’t get anywhere!

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In my post, 7 mindsets for goals; achieving self-motivation, I mentioned a quiz by Gretchen Rubin that described me as the Questioner.  A questioner needs all the answers before she starts anything.

Basically, a questioner questions all the questions.  

I know, right?!

Second reason we fail to achieve our goals

This is going to be painful.  It’s going to be hard.  But others before us have done it:

Moms with kids and caregivers of the elderly.

Grandparents who babysit and moms who work outside or inside the home.

(I happen to be all four of the above.  EEK!)

Here’s the deal:  we MUST accept our current situation.

God has me right here, right now for a reason.  He has strategically placed each person in my life for a purpose!

They are not distractions.  They are tools for the mission.

Tools for the mission?  You ask.  They are the reasons I keep getting distracted!

Nope.

You are the reason you get distracted.

Your people will remain in your life (Lord willing).

How you go about your day and manage your time is your responsibility and whether or not you fail to achieve goals.

So here’s what to do:

1.)  Write 7 priorities for your new year

Don’t make these willy-nilly.  Pray about it.  These should be goals that you know are from the Lord.  Areas that you’ve struggled with for a while to make stick.

Are you familiar with the term SMART goals?  Make them Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Timebound.  You can read more about SMART goals here.

Basically don’t write something like, “Walk more in 2019”.

Walk more than what?!

Walk 20 minutes three times per week every day in January.

Now we’re talking.

You can’t specialize in vagueness and hope to achieve your goals.  Aim high!

2.)  Cut 3 tasks from your new year

THIS WILL BE PAINFUL.  It may mean deleting email or Facebook from your phone.  ACK!  It could mean cutting out your favorite Netflix episode.  Or, it could mean you’re going to shut down that computer by 5:00PM every night!

What daily habit have you discovered as a time waster?  Something you mindlessly do or maybe even feel is a necessity but it doesn’t really get you anywhere?

Do you scrub the floor by hand?  Stop it right now.  Get a mop and get over it.

Do you scroll Instagram for 15 minutes first thing in the morning?  Set a reminder on your phone to have devotions instead.

Do you drive through Starbucks every other day for a pick-me-up before school lets out because you have time and need it?  Go park at the school, surf Pinterest, and get your meal plan together for dinner!

I don’t know what you need to cut;  I don’t know your schedule or your struggles. What you write in number one determines what you do in number two.

3.)  Stop questioning decisions

Once you’ve prayerfully made your goals, hit it full speed ahead.

Is your goal to purge your closet and minimize your wardrobe?  Don’t hit up the outlet malls on vacation next summer (I told you it’d be painful)!

Do you want to lose weight and exercise?  Share your plan with your family and make sure everyone knows up front how you’re cooking this year.

Will you grow your business, spend two hours a week with quality friends, paint your basement?  Delve in with both feet, clear the obstacles, and better yet, erase doubt from your mind.

You can do this!

Goals I failed to achieve last year (because I couldn’t make up my mind)

My questioner traits cause me to think,

“I need more information on how to achieve my goals!”

This kind of mentality is both a blessing AND a curse.

Last year, my goal was to lose 10 pounds.  But I searched the internet all year and never found the exact answer for how to do that (even though I’m a personal trainer and used to run a weight loss program).

Last year, my goal was to hang my mom’s 35 pictures and arrange them into a wall decor.  Instead, I kept surfing Pinterest for the exact way to do it.

Last year, my goal was to grow my blog.  I grew my blog from 35 readers to 1,000, published my first ebook, and produced two video trainings.  That’s a lot.  But had a started the year with a SMART goal as to HOW I would grow my blog, I wouldn’t have gone down 85748394 rabbit holes, subscribed to 8584737327 emails/webinars, and pursued a random freelance career in October that threw everything off!

Stop questioning your goals and go after it.

Are you ready to join me?  Here’s my BONUS tip:  I used Grace Goals to crush my target.  Grace Goals is designed by my personal friend and well-respected Christian blogger, Arabah Joy.  Everything she writes is full of wisdom – and I don’t say that lightly, because I’m picky about what I absorb.

Commit to Grace Goals

If you saw my video testimony of Grace Goals in my last post, then you know a bit about my story. In case you missed it, here it is one more time.  Grace Goals presents a Biblical approach to reaching any goal!

“I do not run without a goal. I fight like a boxer who is hitting something—not just the air.” (1 Corinthians 9:26 NCV)

For an athlete, we all know a lot of focused practice and strategy goes into a win. They don’t take home the gold just by winging it!

In I Corinthians, we see Paul relating the Christian walk to that of an athlete’s. He had both goals and strategy… and we should too. This is the time of year many people set goals only to see them go by the wayside. But it doesn’t have to be that way! This is your invitation to set goals and develop a biblical strategy for reaching them in 2017.

Arabah Joy has compiled a PDF containing 5 mini-workshops that will take you through the process of:

>> Setting practical, godly goals
>> Developing a doable, personal plan for change

>> Learning why grace is the enablement you need
>> Recognizing and appropriating grace in your daily life

>> Much more

Best of all, the grunt work is done for you! This 48-page book will walk you through the entire process.

Challenge for your best year yet

You can do this, mama.  This doesn’t have to be the year you fail to achieve goals.  This can be the year you succeed in Christ!

Simply grab Grace Goals here.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
    and do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him,
    and he will make straight your paths.
Be not wise in your own eyes;
    fear the Lord, and turn away from evil.  ~Proverbs 3:5-6