Goal setting: how to do it and be held accountable

As I briefly mentioned last week, my main goal for this year is to continue running a successful freelance business all while being the best first-time mummy I can be. But what other goals do I have for 2022 and what are my top tips for how you can set your own goals for the year?

New clients

I was really fortunate to begin working with two new regular clients last year – both of whom I love creating content for each month. This year, I would love to gain three more in order to really build on my ten years’ of knowledge and experience within the wonderful world of media.

Work-life balance

This is something I didn’t quite master last year as I would often find myself working evenings and weekends (and not for an additional fee either!). However, by the time this year is out, I would love to be in a position where I have increased how much work I do but reduced the amount of time I do it in, so that I can give myself every Friday off. I’d love nothing more than a four day working week and a three day weekend.

Keep on creating

Last year, I posted consistently on social media – sharing content every single day throughout 2021. This year, I want to continue sharing beautiful imagery, motivation quotes, and interesting facts about animals to as many people as possible. One of the “sub-goals” attached to this, would be to have attracted more than 500 followers on Instagram by the time 2023 arrives. As of today, I have 375 accounts following Chloe May Writes on Instagram. I’m determined to reach more people within the next 12 months.

Finish my top secret project

One of the things I had to postpone last year as a result of a personal family matter, was the completion of my top secret project. Although I’m not yet permitted to reveal what this is, all I can say is that it is something I have always wanted to do and know that I will be so proud of myself once it has been done. I genuinely can’t wait to share it with you!

Setting goals can really help ensure that you are successful in what you are trying to achieve, whether that be in your personal or professional life. Goals provide you with both direction and focus, and also help you to track your progress along the way, which is why it’s important to create clear, specific goals from the very beginning.

Make them meaningful

You should be passionate about the goals you have set out to achieve and, once accomplished, they should provide you with a huge sense of achievement because you are one step closer to being where you want to be. If the goal you have created doesn’t really spark your interest or give you that excited feeling of how you can’t wait to get started, it might be worth readdressing your goal and work backwards to really pinpoint what it is that makes you passionate about what you want to achieve.

Be SMART

We’ve all heard the saying. Goals need to be Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Timely. Without these elements, it will be really difficult to know whether you are heading in the right direction or whether you have even achieved the goal in the first place. For example, if one of your goals is to write more, one way of making it SMART could be: “I want to write two articles per week for my website and one article per week to be published on another website as a way of showcasing my skills to a wider audience.”

Make them visible

Once you have created your goals, write them down or print them out so that you can put them somewhere you can see every day. This will help remind you of where you want to go and serve as the best motivational reminder. Plus, as you achieve each goal, you can take great satisfaction in crossing them off, too!

Believe you can achieve

Although it may seem a little strange at first, being able to visualise a time in which you have reached your goal can really help in the long run. Think about how achieving this goal makes you feel. Imagine all of the benefits that will come from finally reaching your goal. Doing this can be really motivating and will give you something positive to work towards.

One step at a time

It’s all well and good wanting to achieve everything on your list. However, this is just a recipe for overwhelm. Focussing on one goal at a time, as well as the individual tasks that need completing in order to achieve said goal, will ensure that you stay on track and give it your best effort without getting confused by all of the others.

Accountability is your friend

As scary as it may seem, having someone else hold you accountable will help you to achieve your goals a lot quicker than if you simply hold yourself accountable. After all, not telling people would be much simpler since you’d be able to get away with not achieving your goals if people didn’t know what they were! By having an accountability buddy, they can help motivate you as well as celebrate all your achievements along the way.

Don’t forget the rewards!

Even though you’ll get satisfaction for simply achieving your goals, rewarding yourself for doing so is just as important. Treating yourself will help to motivate you and spur you on to achieve more, plus it’s always nice to have something lovely to look forward to.

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