W.H.Y. Coaching

Happy (almost!) New Year! One of my favorite parts of going into the new year is the automatic reset/fresh start. No matter how the year before went, we get a somewhat blank page that we get to fill over the next twelve months. The question is how we want that page to be filled. The holidays can be a rough place to come out of, and often, we come into the new year with really high goals and expectations:

-I’m going to lose 20lbs this year!
-I’m going to run a 5K in less than 30 minutes!
-I’m never going to eat dessert again!
-I’m going to read one book per month!
-I’m going to go to the gym every day!

We might start our new year with these goals written at the top of our page, but after a few weeks, we fail to follow up or write down anything else.

So how do we keep from pulling out the same blank page with unfulfilled expectations at the end of 2024? I’m so glad you asked! 😉 Start the year SMART. In my coaching sessions, I like to ask my clients if their goals are:

–Specific–If you’re wanting to go to the gym this year, how many times a week are you going to do it, and how long will you plan to be there? More specifically, what time will you have to leave to get there, and how much of your day will that take?
“I will go to the gym for 30 minutes 3x/week (MWF) at 3pm for the next three months.”

-Measurable–What will success look like for you? And how will you measure that success? If your goal is to go to the gym, what are you going to do there?
“In three months, success would be to run a 12 minute mile on the treadmill.”

-Attainable/Achievable–Is this goal attainable? And does it work for your lifestyle? If you currently aren’t exercising at all, it’s probably not the best goal to try and run a marathon in three months. But an attainable goal could be to walk/jog a 5K in that time frame. Pick a big goal you can work towards, but then have small goals you can celebrate along the way.

-Relevant–What’s relevant to your current lifestyle? Again, if your desire is to run a marathon, do you have the time, money, and resources to commit to that? Do you have children who require attention and that could prevent you from working towards your goals? What are ways you can incorporate your goals into your lifestyle? Maybe your goal is to run a mile as a family!

-Time-bound–While I feel like each one of these factors is important, the time-bound issue is often one that people don’t add. When we have a time constraint on our goals, it motivates us to work towards it, rather than just putting it off until “tomorrow.” If you really want to do that 5k, sign up for a race! Then you definitely have a deadline of when you need to be in shape to walk/jog/run that thing!

So instead of writing down random/loose goals this year, try writing them down using the SMART acronym. Make it Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-bound. Then at the end of the year, see how many SMART goals you’ve crossed off your list!

I’d love to help you with your SMART goals too. If you’re interested in coaching sessions and need a little push with your new year’s resolutions, book a Discovery Call with me! It’s totally free and non-committal.

Happy SMART Goal-Setting!

Enjoying a post-Christmas walk with my family!
Not pictured is the downpour we got caught in a
few minutes after this was taken.

Baby’s first Christmas made the season extra special this year!