Resolutions Aren't Just for the New Year

Connect with me through your favorite platform: https://pods.link/aardvarkgirl I'm on Clubhouse @aardvarkgirl -- Because of everything that happened in 2020, I think a lot of people are putting a ton of pressure on 2021 to be better. But things don’t suddenly change overnight because the calendar says it’s a new year. So let’s not focus on the date so much as how we approach the current moment. I’m not against New Year's resolutions as a concept. I think it’s important to set goals, intentions, and make plans. But I think those activities should be ongoing throughout the year. What usually happens is people get these grand ideas of all the positive changes they’re going to make in their lives. They get excited. They talk about the great things they’re going to do. Things they’ve been putting off or haven’t been focused enough to accomplish. And everything is instantly going to change when the ball drops. But then what often happens, is they drop the ball. The resolutions weren’t realistic. Whatever the reason, that excitement that was building in December plummets, and they’re often left feeling worse about their situation than before. Why? Because they feel like they failed. They made a declaration and didn’t follow through. So now they not only have to deal with all those things they still want to change, but also an enhanced disappointment in themselves. It’s too much pressure, and it’s often not fair. We should always be striving to improve the way we run our businesses, and there is no blueprint for what the “right” way is. Success is very personal because we all want different things, so goals are very personal, too. The other tricky part about setting goals at the beginning of the year is that things change between January and December. As business owners, we always have to be prepared to pivot. To go in a completely different direction than what we initially expected. I think about my role as a producer. So much of that work is about anticipating changes and expecting the unexpected. And then when something happens that wasn’t in any of your backup plans, you have to think quickly, take charge, and find a solution.  And that’s how life works a lot of the time, too. You may have spent a ton of time planning what you’re going to do and how you’re going to do it and what it’s going to be like when you reach that goal. But sometimes something out of your control is going to happen and totally throw you off course. When that happens, you basically have two choices. You let that change defeat you and give up, or you figure out a new plan and keep moving forward. Changing course doesn’t mean you’ve failed. Changing your mind doesn’t mean you’ve failed. Sometimes that thing that happens, that thing that’s out of your control, is you. You change your mind. Somewhere along your journey, you decide that it’s not the right path for you after all. Your priorities shift. You find something new you’re more passionate about. No matter what happens, you have every right to change your mind. Don’t hold yourself hostage to an idea if it no longer resonates with you. You haven’t wasted your time if you’ve learned something, even if what you’ve learned is that you don’t actually want what you thought you did. So how do you set goals, whether they’re for the new year or any other time, when the only constant is change? You’ve probably heard about SMART goals, and if you haven’t, do a quick Google search. The gist of it is to be specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound. Specific means detailed. You don’t want a vague resolution like “I want to lose weight.” Instead, be specific – “I want to lose 20lbs.” Measurable means there is some kind of statistic you can reference. So instead of “I am going to do better at pitching my services,” you would say, “I am going to reach out to 10 potential clients every week.” Attainable means to be realistic. Is your goal practical? If you made $50,000 dollars last year, is it r