This isn’t your typical “you need to make S.M.A.R.T. goals” post… like I learned back in 5th grade that goals should be specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and timely…

No, this is the straight up “we all know how hard new years resolutions can be” post and here are ways you can make sure you will be better off at the end of this year than you were last year.

Have you noticed I have said goals and not resolutions? A resolution is a saying firmly that you will or will not do something, this is a surefire way to break your resolutions and “fail” another year of resolutions. Be kinder on yourself and call them goals as it is not natural for us to quit cold turkey.

Realistic vs Slightly Unrealistic Goals

This might just be my personality, but I say screw making your goals “realistic.” I’m not saying make goals such as I will be a millionaire at the end of this year. Unless that is only a little bit of a stretch than you, if that’s you, good for you! BUT that sure as heck isn’t gonna be me anytime in the next decade. I’m saying make goals that you don’t think you could reach this year but maybe by the end of the next year. This is because if you make slightly unrealistic goals and you don’t meet them, chances are you will have done better than if you had made the quote “realistic” goal.

Or if that wasn’t your style, make smaller goals that you will keep changing so that you keep increasing your goal. This is a complete contradiction, but I feel like there are two people, those that go big or go home and those that need to take baby steps to get started to they get hooked checking off goals they reached.

For both methods, I suggest that you write down your progress so that you feel some amount of success and progress, trust me it really helps.

Tips for Making & Goals

1. Organize your goals into areas of your life
   • Make goals based on the various areas of your life you want to improve. For example in my New Year’s Resolution post, I had mine broken down into health & fitness, mental health, blogging & social media, academics, and finances. This causes you to put more thought into what you want to change in those specific areas of your life.
2. Share your goals with people in your social circle
   • If your friends and colleagues don’t know you are trying to save money, then they will ask you to hang out in ways that might cost money. Just like if you don’t tell people you are trying to be healthier or lose weight then they may offer you junk food. Make your goals known and it makes the temptation a lot less.
3. Plan your success
   • Yeah yeah, it’s cheesy I know, but it works. What I mean by this is to plan your week to keep on track with your goals. If you have a goal of a weekly budget or to eat healthier, plan your meals for the week to fit in your budget and meal prep as much as possible beforehand. Not only does it makes your goals more achievable, but it also makes your life easier, less stressful, and more productive. It sucks having to figure out what you are going to eat and staring at your fridge and pantry trying to figure it out. I will literally go back and forth between my pantry and my fridge as if I wasn’t just at it hoping something will magically pop out. Avoid this dance and other challenges by planning for them in advance.

In The End

Don’t forget to be easy on yourself, you are working towards making big changes in your life and sometimes you have to fall off to realize why you got on in the first place.

Even if you don’t reach your goal, with the two ways I have suggested to make goals, you should end up doing better than you would of if you just made one singular “SMART” goal that was realistic. I personally prefer the first suggestion of making slightly unrealistic goals because that is my personality. Choose what is best for you based off of your personality.

I hope these tips helped and I know you are going to kill it this year!

~Madison Eran~

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