HAPPY NEW YEAR GUYS!!!
By the grace of God, we've made it into the new decade! It's funny to think that in these upcoming years, many of us will God willing have begun our careers, gotten married, or even had a kid or two. These next ten years are surely going to be filled with many milestones.
Now with a new year, comes the well known saying, "New year, new me."
You've said it; I've said it; we've all proclaimed this statement. It gives us an assurance within ourselves that we're committed to changing our bad habits and becoming better people. The only thing that would make everything perfect, is if we could actually maintain this mindset throughout the rest of the year, and not only the first few weeks of 2020.
Another thing that comes with the new year is resolutions. We've all probably made plans or at least decided in our minds to do this or that. There's absolutely nothing wrong with having goals. The problem is that, we start with them but then at a point in the year, we begin to detach ourselves from our goals. The reasons?
Poor planning and lack of focus.
Luke 14:28 states that,
"Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it?"
God's Word encourages us to plan effectively before we carry out any action. This way, we can decide whether our goals are achievable and what to do in order to get to where we want to go.
Here are five steps in effectively planning out your goals/resolutions for the new year.
Write down your goals
Writing down what you'd like to achieve, in a way, makes it more real. It kind of makes it official that, 'Yes, this is something I'm set on doing.'
Write down as many goals as you want at this stage.
Analyse your goals
At this point, you want to narrow down your goals. Ask yourself these questions:
- Realistic: All things are possible with God, but are you factoring in the right conditions needed to get to your mark?
- Achievable: Is it something you see yourself being able to do?
- Time Constrained: Can you give yourself a time period and achieve your goal within that specific time constraint?
- God's Will: Is your goal in accordance to the will of God? Is it something that will glorify God or is it something that will divert your attention from Him? Enquire of God before you go ahead to plan out your goal into detail.
Plan out your goals
Your written goals are just skeletons; you need to add some flesh to them. It's time to go into detail now. Give yourself a realistic time limit to strive towards in achieving your goals. Time limits help you in focusing your mind towards finishing the race you started and pushes you to get to the fulfillment of your goals. Make sure they are realistic and something that you can work with.
Write out the ways in which you will achieve your goal. Will you have to take online lessons to learn that new skill? Will you have to get a job to save up for that trip? Planning into detail will give you an idea of how you're going to go about working towards your goal. Add as much detail as possible.
Set up reminders
It's easy to forget along the way what your resolutions were. That's why, aside writing down your goals, it's also helpful to set up reminders of your goals around you.
One idea is to stick your goals on your bedroom wall. You can also design a bulletin board for your goals. Just print out pictures relating to your goals and stick them on the bulletin board. You're reminded every day of what you want to achieve and it's impossible to forget if you see it all the time. It'll prompt you to get the task done.
Weekly/Monthly Reviews
Instead of waiting until the end of the year before you realise that you've gone off-track with your resolutions, why not set a time for yourself where you reflect on what you've achieved so far?
It could be every 2 or 3 months. You sit down and assess yourself, on how far you've come and the progress of your goals.
In all things, don't forget to commit all your ways to God. We may make our plans but He directs our actions (Proverbs 16:9). Your resolutions may not be what God wants for you or He knows that this is probably not the right time for you to begin that journey in achieving that goal. That's why it's important ask Him to lead you in your decision making.
It's also important to know the reason for wanting to reach a particular target. Is that ambition for you or are you only doing it because everyone else seems to be doing so?
This new year has so much in store for us, and so does God. All we have to do is avail ourselves and not be afraid to step out into the world to make a difference. I pray for the best for each and every one of you, and I hope this year will be an unforgettable one for all my EuniqueBlogs family.
What are some of your new year resolutions for 2020? One of mine is to grow in my relationship with God. Feel free to share some of yours in the comments below or email me. Your words are greatly appreciated.
Stay blessed and stay a blessing.
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