When I wrote this post in 2017, I was in a different place. I am amazed to just re-read and see my personal and spiritual growth. This 2022 when you are planning your next year be sure that God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit are at the forefront of your plans.

2021 was filled with so many changes and battles. But what stands out the most is at the highest and lowest I always felt like God was with me. Whether it was a minor day-to-day nuisance or a major life change I knew he was right there holding my hand through it all. 
I want to just encourage you to walk into 2022 with that same understanding. Call out to God. Welcome Him into your day. Leverage the gift of the Holy Spirit. When you fall short remember that Jesus already paid the price for your sins. 

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16 ESV
 

At the end of 2016, I wrote down the goals I wanted to achieve for 2017. Writing down your goals is imperative for holding yourself accountable for achieving your goals. Setting checkpoints to review your goals is essential to staying on track.

I reviewed my goals bi-monthly and I thought it would be fun to do an end-of-year goal review. Before I share my goals and progress, I wanted to share the tips that I feel helped me achieve my goals.

Planning

Goal setting is would absolutely nothing without a plan. Great you have a goal but how do you plan to get it done. How are you going to get from $1,000 a month to $2,000 a month, 180 pounds to 160 pounds, receptionist to account specialist? My point is going from a to b doesn’t happen simply because you wrote it down on a piece of paper. You have to sit down and brainstorm the actions you need to take in order to create your desired change.

Creating Systems

As crazy as it sounds, creating systems has been imperative to my productivity and success this year. Although creating systems can be time-consuming because it does take trial and error to find what works best for you.

For example, if you have a weight loss goal of 40 lbs. this year understanding your habits and trying different things can make or break your weight loss journey. If you’re an early riser on the weekend it would be best to try a 3-day workout plan (i.e., Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday). If you know your office usually has treats that you love or lunch delivered on Friday it’s likely best to make Friday a cheat day. 

My point is the best way to create a win-win system is to take note of your environment, know when you are at your best, and plan for some fun. For example, I would love to sit down and write 5 blog posts in one day but that is just not realistic for me so every month I plan for a 3-4 days blog batch session. I always plan it for the middle of the month because I know the beginning and end of the month are hectic times for me.

As a thank you for reading my blog, you can download your Goal Planning Workbook now -no email required!

Adapting/Changing Course 

Every good planner has a backup plan. Well, I think, every good planner knows how to adapt and readjust their course when necessary. Sometimes you’ll find during your plan that it just won’t work for your goal. Most of the time it’s because of things that are out of our control or knowledge we didn’t have when we created the plan. 
But the thing about planning is when you have good habits and you’re adaptable, you can still make your goals happen. For example, one of my goals this year was to grow my blog traffic. I did a lot of research, tried a lot of different tactics, but didn’t see a lot of results. But I kept going at it anyway even though I wasn’t seeing any change. This actually takes me to my next point.

Putting Myself Out There

I did not see any changes in my blog traffic until I stepped outside of my comfort zone. I put myself out there and began attending blogger meetups. These meetups gave me the opportunity to gain a lot of information in a small amount of time from different people all working within my field. For the record, my blog traffic doubled after this meetup and tripled the following month. All because I stepped outside of my comfort zone.

By taking the time to meet new people and being open to learning from others. I was able to adapt my plan and meet my blog traffic goal. Although there is a lot of information available online, in books, and from experts. Most people prefer to receive information from someone they know or trust. 


If you enjoy this post, you may find these intentional living blog posts helpful.

Chellbee End of the Year Review

  • Improve my relationship with God. This is a continuous journey but I’ve grown a lot this year. I am looking forward to the journey ahead. 
  • Prioritize spending time with my family. Naturally, I’m a hermit so we started doing Sunday Dinners. We eat, laugh, talk, and play spades together. Sunday dinners have become something I always look forward to and think about throughout my week.
  • Publish my first book. The funny thing is I had not planned to release the Faith Journal. The truth is I was writing a completely different book but God had other plans. A month before the release I dropped one idea for His will and it has been a blessing. 
  • Grow my blog and brand. This has been an up-and-down battle. But I reach several of my longtime goals, readjusted my focus, and am thankful for the opportunities that have been afforded to me this year. More than anything else I’m thankful for every comment, like, tweet, and email from each one of you. 

Make sure you download your super cute goal-setting worksheet to ensure you have all you need to make the most of this year.

Still, wondering if you should write down your goals? Here are 3 reasons why you should: 

  1. Create a road map for the year! Take notes of your lessons learned and roadblocks.
  2. Hold you accountable for taking control of your goals.
  3. Remove the barriers that cause you to repeatedly fall short of completing your goals. You can’t fix what you don’t know is broken.

Every day is what you make of it.

So, let’s make the commitment together that we’re going to make every day absolutely amazing. We’re giving everything we have to create the life that we want today.