Are Your Goals Useless?

Can you believe 2017 is half over? 6 months have flown by and it is time to do a formal check in to see how I am doing with the goals I set for myself back in January. I set some finance, health, happiness and relationship goals and now we will see if I am on track, need to get in gear or need to adjust them to fit my current situation. This is a critical step to ensure my goals are not simply words on a piece of paper or ideas in my head.

I like to write down my goals and keep them in my face so I don’t neglect them or forget about them. My Google Keep Page comes up every time I turn on my computer so that is where I jotted them down. I like that I can color code it and rearrange it and check things off when completed. Unfortunately I am not computer savvy enough to move it to this post so I will need to type it over!

My Keep page kind of looks like this! Each color is a list!

My Finance Goals and Updates

  • Increase income by 15% over 2016 – I just ran my numbers and so far my income is up 12% over last year. I feel I am on track to meet this goal.
  • Increase car fund to $12,000 or buy a car- My car fund is currently at $10,000 so I am on track and feeling pretty good about this one.
  • Max out my Roth IRA – DONE!!!!!
  • Max out my HSA (Health Savings Account) – Now that my ROTH IRA is fully funded I have just begun to tackle this goal. It is time to get in gear!
  • Invest $4000 in stock market – I will not address this until the above goals are met.
My Health Goals and Updates
  • Be flexible enough to touch my toes – This goal just won’t go away because I really want to be flexible but I still haven’t found a good routine for stretching. With that said I have made progress and am currently  4  inches from touching my darn toes. I devoted a whole post to touching my toes quite a while ago, check it out at Creating Habits To Reach My Goals and Toes.
  • Get blood work done – not done yet
  • Have a mammogram – not done yet
  • Go to dermatologist – DONE!
  • Have a colonoscopy – DONE!
  • Drink 4 pints of water daily – I haven’t really been tracking this one but I would estimate that I drink 2-3 pints a day. It is easy to meet it when I am doing yard work but tougher when at the nursing home. I did bring a big glass to work and stuck it in my drawer. Guess I will pull it out each day and fill it up as soon as I get to work so I start the day on the right track.
  • Learn the series of 108 Tai Chi moves – DONE!
My Relationship Goals and Updates
  • Go on a kayak trip – This goal has morphed into going to Alaska and that trip is scheduled to take place in September.
  • Go to Florida to see Mother Fran – DONE! My honey and I drove to Florida in February and saw family and friends on the way. We had a fun 2 week vacation and got to escape Upstate NY in the winter.
  • Have 4 gatherings at home with friends – Done! I like cooking at home for friends and think I will aim for 3 more of these gatherings before the end of the year.

My Happiness Goals and Updates

  • Average 4 blog posts per month – DONE.
  • Complete a garden project – In progress. I extended my flower patch by about 3 feet and planted day lilies. I still want to rearrange some flowers in the front of the house and in the back to make the areas look less haphazard. I also just found a small wooden sleigh and have roped Mother Fran into helping me turn it into a planter.
  • Complete a furniture project – I started stripping the stain off of an antique dresser in October 2016. Haven’t touched it since…
  • Track and earn CEU’s (Continuing Education Credits) – This goal got bigger when I decided to become a Certified Health Coach! I have completed chapters 1-6 of my study guide and 5 more chapters to go. Then I have to schedule and take the exam. The goal is to get this done by the end of 2017. Obtaining the certification will also earn me plenty of CEU’s. Win, Win!
  • Update My Strategic Plan – I have not done this yet.

On New Year’s Eve, many of us make a big deal about creating resolutions to make changes in our lives. Resolutions, goals, intentions are pretty much useless unless you take the time to review your progress, identify your barriers and develop action plans. If you haven’t reviewed your goals recently,  take a few minutes to do it now.  Your health, wealth and happiness likely depend on your progress and that is pretty darn important.

Why bother to create useless goals?

Lake Girl

 

 

 

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