How to set Mindful Goals for 2021

Every end of the year we are setting goals for the new year. This new year that is going to be so much better than the current one. The new year that we will be a much better version of ourselves.

How many times did you promise yourself that you will go 3 times a week to the gym, you will save x amount of money, you will learn another language, you will …

How many times, some of these goals never happened?

How many times the same goal appeared on your list?

How many times did you decide not to set any more goals, since it doesn’t make any difference?

First of all, it’s normal. It’s completely normal to set goals and not achieve them. And even if writing is an extremely powerful tool for manifesting things, the problem lies in the WHY of the goal. We don’t know why we want to achieve these things. We believe that if we lose these extra 10 kilograms, we will be happier. We haven’t acknowledged though what these “10 kilograms” mean to us. We haven’t realised what’s missing to make us feel happy.

This year, I want to invite you to set mindful goals;

goals that have meaning to us, to our personal well-being; goals that will make us enjoy life. Because there is no other reason for you being here, other than enjoying this life, even if it sounds strange.

When you are thinking of a goal, eg “I want to have more money”, I want you to think of what this money means to you. How would this money make your life easier? Would this money give you more time to do something you enjoy more? Would this money give you more freedom? Would this money provide support to your family in a specific way? Why is it important to you? For each goal, analyse in-depth the WHY and the importance.

I will describe to you a mindful goal-setting exercise. When you do this exercise, I suggest that you focus on the exercise for at least 30min and create a small ritual. Find a quiet space, play some music that you enjoy, lit a candle, relax. It is important to give space to yourself and praise the process because it is your process.

Let’s start!

We will split our goals into 5 categories:

• Relationships
• Career/Income
• Leisure
• Habitat
• Health

You can make a copy of the file here, create your own file or just use a piece of paper to do this exercise. Here are the steps:

1. Think of a goal in each category. Even if you think that one of these categories is currently working fine, still put some time into setting a goal there. The goal should be related to your own happiness and only. In each category choose the ONE most important goal for you only and write it down. As in the aforementioned example, think of why this goal is essential to you.
2. When you have all of your goals written, rank them in order of priority or desirability. Which of the goals do you want to achieve the most?
3. When your goals are ranked, have a second look and think if something needs to change. Or do you see any connection among the different goals? Feel free to change anything now.
4. Under each goal now, write any sub-goals needed to lead you to the most significant goal.
5. For each goal, write a word that reflects how your life will be better when you achieve it.
6. For each goal, write a word that reflects what might hinder you in achieving the goal. How are you going to overcome this barrier?
7. Repeat Step 5 and write as many benefits you see in your life when you will have these goals achieved.
8. Repeat Step 6 and write as many barriers you see in your next steps. Write also how you will overcome them.

If you went through all these steps, you now have created your mindful goals. Your personal journey to happiness. Maybe some things bubbled up through this process. Perhaps you saw why you want some things and what limits you now. I would suggest embracing everything that appeared in your writing process and reflect after time.

For now, if you have created your document on your computer, print it and place it in a nice envelope with your name on it. Keep this envelope safe, as it contains information about your personal journey to happiness.

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Thank you for reading! My next post will be about creating an action plan for your goals, so stay tuned! Also, please send me your messages about your goals, any questions, or any feedback you have.

With love always.