5 Ways to Make Goals More Manageable & Achievable

We all have goals. Some huge, others small. No matter the size, sometimes the goal requires more from us than we realized. This feeling can cause doubt, procrastination and sometimes drop the goal all together.  Whether your goals are ginormous or just a step in the right direction, learning ways to make goals more achievable without it taking over your life never hurt anyone. 

1 | Make it part of your routine.

There’s no better way to ensure you will accomplish something like spending time on it each day or week. Wouldn’t publishing a book be a lot easier if you spent 20 min a day writing, than if you decided you had lock yourself in a room for as long as it takes to complete your next masterpiece of a book?  When a goal becomes part of your routine it takes away the conflict of when to work on it or if you should in less than perfect circumstances.

2 | Have someone to talk to about your goals.

It’s not uncommon to hear that you should be careful who you share your dreams with. People can inflict their worries onto you and unintentionally discourage you. Deciding who to share your goals with may be a challenge but there’s no doubt this is important. My goals are much better fleshed out when I have people to talk to about them on a regular basis. Let it be someone you trust, who understands the process, and most importantly is working on their own goals.

3 | Schedule a date with your goals.
Once a month, schedule some time with just you and your goals. See how you both been doing. No pressure, just a review of you and the goal’s interaction. Here you can decide if the goal is still what you want. If necessary, ou can now readjust your energy towards the goal the following month.

4 | Have diverse goals.
Diverse goals prompts more experiencing and less grinding. When we have goals that only focus on one area like financial success, it’s easy to get drained and unmotivated. The overall experience of striving for a better your life can be filled with variety: spiritual, friendships, professional, physical, environmental, romantic. Growing in one area will also help growth in another.

5 | Put it on the Calendar.

“If you don’t schedule it, it doesn’t happen.” If you haven’t heard this enough by now and still don’t do it then there’s really nothing more I can say.

In 2018 we are truly in a time where anything is possible. Your goals are not as farfetched as it seems.

Make it part of you daily life.
Get you a trusted friend to have goal-talk.
Take your goals on a date every month.
Keep it multi-faceted.
And if you don’t want to forget your goal, pencil her in.

It’s part of who we are as humans to strive for a better future, it must mean that deep down we know it’s possible.

Feel free,

Melissa
Professional Organizer/ Owner
Feel Free Club

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The Shortcut to Success: Time and Effort

I recently went to Atlanta’s 2017 Small Business Expo at the Cobb Galleria. It was the perfect timing for me because I’ve been wanting to connect with other service providers within the Atlanta community. There were a few things that made this opportunity attractive. One, the venue was enormous, so I knew they expected many business owners to come out. Two, it was an all-day event, so I could go when I wanted and leave when I was ready. Lastly, it was free.  As a small business owner being resourceful is key to growth and staying in business.

What I Found

I went not knowing what to expect. From the parking lot to the bathroom stalls, I met some incredible people who have taken their ideas and turned them into reality.  I was happy to be around the energy of it all.  Every person received a badge, identifying stickers, and then you were left to take it all in: booths, workshops, speed networking and more. I dropped in on one workshop focused on public speaking. It was informative, but of course there was a hook. By the end of the session they were asking you to sign your life away.

Get Rich Quick Scheme or Opportunity

I’ve been in this position before, and probably many of you have as well. Where you’re taking a chance to better yourself through education or an opportunity, just to find out that they want you to invest a large sum of money to take advantage of it.

I may be impulsive when trying something new or with the matters of the heart, but when it comes to money I like to do my due diligence. But in these scenarios they don’t want you to research.  They don’t want you to confer with a trusted advisor. They just want you to ACT.  Act based off emotions and not logic. We’re emotional beings and many of us act based on how we feel, not on what’s right or wrong but how our hearts tell us to respond. This often causes us to do things we regret. When it comes to financial regret, if you don’t have a savings- 66 million Americans do not – making an emotional financial decision can be detrimental to your current circumstance.

Who Are “They” Targeting

Call it get rich quick schemes or call it opportunity, many well intended and hopeful people fall for this lie: You can make a lot of money quickly and without much effort. I see people who desire to make a better life for themselves and their loved ones. Not only do you want to save others, you want someone to save you.  Save you from your struggles and the ups and downs required to be successful.  But here’s the thing, if you look at anyone you truly admire and learn their story, it took two very specific things to get where they are: time and effort- a lot of effort, aka hard work but many don’t like to hear that. There’s no escaping it. As much as we’ve sped up everything else- connections thru social media, dating thru aps, having anything delivered right to our door (now right to our living rooms). We can’t speed up fulfillment, satisfaction or success. Dues must be paid in full every single month.

The Takeaway

I know it’s tempting to believe you can make 6 figures in the matter of months or turn your life from rags to riches. It sounds like a fairytale and that’s where these stories shall stay- in books, in daydreams. But in reality, where you and I both live, you’ve got to put more than just a little skin in the game to have your deepest desires. Don’t let anyone tell you they can make you rich or successful without putting in the time or effort to show you. Don’t run from the time nor the effort. They’re both getting spent, whether it’s to your benefit is up to you.

Feel free,

Mel

Habit Tracking: the Perfect Motivator for Personal Change

Recently a book changed my life. Maybe not changed my life but changed how I see my life. “Change your perspective and everything changes,” they say.  I have five more days until the library takes Better than Before back, so I’ve been frantically reading it day and night. The book is about recognizing your habits, building the good ones, while eliminating the bad ones. I always thought that anyone could build habits as long as they schedule it and take action for 30 days than whalah, new habit in place. But it’s not that easy is it. Most of the habits I’ve built have been out of necessity or stem from when I was younger. I’ve always been reading a book since the moment I could read and still do to this day, good habit. I always need dessert after every meal and can spend hours inspecting every pore on my face after a shower, bad habit.

As I’ve gotten older and taken on new roles (mother, business owner) decreasing my bad habits have been easy, but building new ones have got the best of me. With every new skill or accomplishment, making it a part of your daily routine is the best way to master it. Yet, it doesn’t matter what I do, new habits won’t stick. No matter how motivated I am or how much I know it will be good for me, my old habits always win. That’s before I realized that we all establish habits differently and understanding yourself makes all the difference.

Better than Before, dives into how we are all hard wired by our tendencies. The four tendencies are: Upholder, Obligor, Questioner, and Rebel. Majority of people fit into the Obligor or Questioner tendency. I’m a Questioner all the way. I need to understand the reason for doing things and believe it to be for the greater good AND valid in order to follow thru. To find out which tendency rules you take the quiz (it’s pretty enlightening). This realization shed light on the fact that I’m a closer and more motivated by inner expectations than outer ones. A habit tracking chart seemed like the perfect solution to tackle my struggles.

It’s simple, low maintenance, and feeds that little person inside me that lights up when something gets done. More importantly, it allows me to track my habits. If there’s no measuring involved, assumption, intention and memory is all that’s left. Unfortunately, those things will always lean towards your favor even if it’s not true. The facts are allow you to know if change has really come.

I’m amped to see how the tracker helps improve my habits. I’m not looking for perfection. We all know none of that exists, but improvement is bliss. If you’re anything like me and tired of being stagnant, doing something different is the key. Take the quiz or dive into the book, either way, find what’s going to help you make lasting change. Will post an update soon on the results 😉.

*This post is not sponsored in any way.*

Feel free,

Mel