I started this post a few times and just started typing but each time it just turned into babble and deleted it. Not sure what I want to say I suppose I got a bit reflective of my year as 2019 comes to a close. I’ll be honest it’s not been the easiest year for me but if I’m very lucky it will be one of my hardest because I’ve survived.
Weather you are moaning the passing of 2019 or counting down the minutes till the new one starts I think it’s good to reflect on it. Think about where you were 12 months ago and how far you’ve come. It might not have been the route you expected or wanted but I’m sure you will have learnt things along the path one way or another.
So thinking about your relationships, your health and well being, your finances, your personal growth, what have been your successes and your moments of joy and what were you disappointed with. For me it’s uncomfortable thinking about some of those things but each one has taught me something, even if its only something about myself.
So with those lessons learnt its time to look to the future. I read something about visualising your perfect life and I thought what rubbish. Life is imperfection and striving for perfection is a road to unhappiness in my opinion. I think the article was trying to get you to visualise the future, which is a powerful tool, but I think I like something I got from my Usborne colleagues – HUGG. Set yourself a Huge Unbelievable Giant Goal that if anything was possible you’d want to achieve in 2020. Then visualise it! The idea of a HUGG is that if you say you’ll be debt free you might not get your mortgage paid off but clear all your loans and credit cards.
Next step is to think about Why!!! So in my HUGG I might be debt free by the end of 2020 so I can start to save some money to do the extension, or go on a holiday, or buy a new car. Whatever floats your boat – it could even be to buy a boat!! Understanding Why you are doing something is key to helping you keep motivated. WHY is the reason you’ll make sacrifices, thrive in discomfort, and push yourself out of your comfort zone – all because you want what’s on the other side! And sometimes it might not be the first answer. I’ll give you one of my examples:
In my HUGG I have an extended house? – Why is that important?
The house is too small for us all? – Why is that important?
There isn’t enough space for us all to do what we’d like? Why is this important?
My daughter wants space away from the boys, the boys need a bit of space from each other and I need more space? Why is this important?
I want to be able to cook & bake more in the kitchen because I love it and I want more space to work from home while the kids are playing comfortably not on top of each other. – These are the things that I visualise in my Huge Unbelievable Giant Goal and the Why!
Then it’s time to get SMART and do some goals and action plans
Specific – what exactly do you want to achieve?
Measurable – how will you know you’ve made it?
Achievable – is it possible for you to achieve this goal?
Realistic – are you over-estimating what’s really possible?
Time-bound – have you set a deadline?
So for example
Specific – I want to be debt free. Measurable – paid off all loans and debts. Achievable – if I save and am very very careful with my money I can. Realistic – its a HUGG. Time-bound – end of the year.
Then what you have to do is break it down into small steps, so look at how much you are going to cut back on each month, and put in a target. They take daily action to achieve it. Make lunch instead of buying it, walk instead of using the petrol in the car. Take lots of small actions daily and that is how you will be successful.
So in a bizarre twist I was going to write about how genuinely happy people seemed to be that we had reopened the shop and I this probably gives you an insight into my mind – it can go any where!!