There are many ways you can set your goals. Some people like to set New Year resolutions, while others might prefer to set new goals every week. There really isn’t any right or wrong, it simply comes down to what works best for you. Personally, I prefer to set monthly goals. At the start of the month, I will open up my Positivity Planner and write down my goals, habits and bucket list for the month ahead. Then at the end of each month, I’ll go back to my planner and reflect on what went well and what I want to change.
I’ve found that by having monthly goals I’m more likely to achieve everything on my list. In the past when I’ve set myself a New Year resolution, my motivation tends to wear thin and I usefully forget about my goal by the end of the year. Another reason why I prefer monthly goals is that it allows smaller goals to be added to your list. Whether that’s learning a new recipe or having date night with your partner, when you have a shorter amount of time to achieve a goal, you’re more likely to add on the smaller but equally important goals.
In this post, I’m going to share my monthly goal-setting routine with you. Detailing how I set and review my goals every month to ensure these goals will benefit me.
1. Choose a planner and stick to it
Firstly, you will want to choose one planner for your goals and stick to it. If you write your goals in the same planner every month, this will make it easier to reflect and see how far you’ve come. You will be able to notice patterns, for example do you keep setting the same goal? Or maybe the goals you’re setting aren’t benefiting you. Having one planner for your goals might sound like an obvious thing to do, however it’s all too easy just to grab any notebook or a piece of paper to write down your goals. Having the same planner creates accountability, motivation and routine, if you write down your goals this month, you’re more likely to reflect and create new goals next month.
I like to use the Positivity Planner to create monthly goals. I love the structure and style of the planner. It’s also undated which means you can start anytime.
2. Plan your month
The first thing I do when setting monthly goals is plan my month. I will start by writing down what I want my month to look like, when doing this I follow the same prompts every time. These prompts help to create balance in your life, as they encourage you to focus on both your personal growth and your well-being.
Focus goal: What goal are you focusing on this month?
Well-being: How will you make your mental and physical health a priority?
Happiness: What can you do this month to bring more happiness into your life?
More of: What do you need more of this month?
Less of: What do you need less of this month?
3. Vision your month
The next thing I do is create a vision board at the start of every month. You can print out pictures, add in stickers or include images or words that inspire you. You could even use this space to draw your vision. I love to add this step into my routine as it’s a fun, relaxing and it doesn’t take much time, it also helps make my goals seem more real.
I create my monthly vision board inside my Positivity Planner, this way I have one place to look back on all of my vision boards, to reflect and see how much I’ve grown.
4. Choose your habits
Once I have planned my month and created my vision board, I will choose which habits I want to develop this month. Sometimes the habit I choose is something which I want to turn into a lifestyle, such as making my bed every morning. Other times I might give myself the challenge to focus on, such as 30 days of yoga.
Creating new habits for yourself can introduce more positivity into your day-to-day. By using a habit tracker you can keep yourself accountable to your new habits by measuring your progress. To keep track of my habits I use the habit tracker inside the Positivity Planner, this helps me stay consistent with my habits and helps me notice any patterns.
5. Write a bucket list
What’s on your bucket list? At the start of every month, I create a collection of dreams, goals and aspirations, these are both big and small goals. Most bucket lists are created with at least a year to achieve them, but most bucket lists are forgotten about. Having a monthly bucket list means you’re more likely to tick things off. A shorter time frame also gives you the opportunity to think about the smaller things you want to achieve.
6. Make time to reflect
The final thing I do is reflect on my goals and habits at the end of every month. A reflection is an important tool for growth, by reflecting for just ten minutes at the end of every month you will make more progress towards your goals. Inside my planner, I answer the following questions:
- What went well?
- What did I prioritise?
- What am I proud of?
- What can I improve?
- What am I grateful for?
Are you going to start setting yourself monthly goals? If you’re interested in following this goal-setting routine, then you can check out my Positivity Planner here!
