A new year… setting up my planner and goals for 2021.
Selecting and setting up my planner each year is just about the only thing that eases the sting of the holiday season ending. I should probably let go of my gingerbread house and take down the magical twinkle lights strewn about the apartment. And while I mourn the seasonal shift, at least I can take heart in being able to crack open a brand new planner with all the ferver of unlocking a secret well of possibility. That’s what a new year feels like to me - a bottomless dark-as-night-bright-as-a-star well of possibility.
I know the only real difference between one year and the next is a sunset, a sunrise, and an ever-increasing calendar, but it feels different because I, and so many others, have chosen it as an intentional reset.
I am not different. I am not made anew. I am the same old me and I am looking forward with joy, intention, no small amount of hope, and a clean slate.
Here’s to making magic this year, I tell myself.
As I have for the last two years, I’ll be using Golden Coil as my planner of choice this year. The quality of the cover and interior papers and the simple design speaks to me on a very deep level. So deep that I made a whole video about it! Who is surprised? No one.
If you want a more in-depth review and peek inside of the planner, check out the video linked below.
Now, let’s talk about goal setting…
I would like to say at the outset, that goal setting is not something that I’ve always done. It’s only something that I’ve really gotten into since becoming obsessed with planning. It’s probably one of the reasons that I took to the practice so quickly. Starting to plan and starting to think about my goals (which is to say, the things that I want to accomplish in life that really matter to me) gave me such a feeling of peace and control. It’s out of my head and my heart and on paper and while that doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s going to happen, it certainly feels like a step closer.
Creating a goal is really just the start. But accomplishing big things is all about lots of little starts.
My process for thinking of my yearly goals is to start with scratch paper and brain dump everything I can think of. Oh, and I also move over any unaccomplished goals from the year before (if they still matter to me). I like to sit with these for a little while. Add a few. Cross out a few. Really make sure that they feel right.
Once everything is feeling right, I break down my goals into categories. My goal categories this year are as such: Creative (writing, blogging, youtube), Financial, and Personal.
After everything is broken down into categories, I break them down into quarterly goals. This could look like taking my savings goal for the year and dividing it into four quarters. Or taking a big creative goal like “write a book” and making the outline your goal for the first quarter, first draft the goal for the second, and so on. It helps me to make big goals feel manageable. It also feels good to have a series of accomplishments throughout the year, as opposed to just one at the end of the year (hopefully).
Have I mentioned that I’m still in the scratch paper phase? This all takes a while for me and I make lots of changes along the way. As a slowly recovering perfectionist, putting pen to paper in my planner typically takes a mountain of forethought. And then once it’s there I say a little prayer (joking! kind of!) and pick one to start with. Lots of little steps.
I try to look back on the goals often, but I find myself referencing them the most throughout the year is when I’m feeling a little lost. When I’m in need of grounding. I find few things to be better for that.
I also try to look at them quarterly to take stock of how my breakdowns are doing. I’m very bad at doing this on time and find that it doesn’t really matter. It all works out the same. I go easy on myself and I encourage you to do the same. Hold them lightly. But don’t let go. They are the things closest to your heart, after all.
Dear reader, I am wishing you the very best for this new year. It’s a fool’s errand to imagine what it might hold in store for us, but I hope that amidst uncertainty, the practice of goal setting can bring you a measure of peace. That it may be your compass.
As ever,
Keya