The time has come for me to plan. I realize that I am probably a little late to the game.
This year has been great for me in terms of clients, however, it’s taken me well into December! In past years, I’ve had my last client somewhere around the middle of November. I typically enjoy the lack of “to do” lists around the holidays, but honestly – it’s been a nice change to have more clients to serve around this time of year. With the small client-load, the stress is often higher, simply because I need to make sure my marketing plan is on-point. I always say that when I’m busy with clients (in other words, providing for my family), I am less stressed than when I’m not busy (in other words, bleeding money through marketing). The clients I am privileged to hang out with during the holidays have made my holidays even brighter this year!
I Love Planning.
I’ve always been a dreamer, planner and doer.
When I started school at Boise State University, I was renting a small 900 sq ft home with my brother. After living there for a few months, I realized that if I stayed at Boise State, in 4-5 years (the amount of time it would have taken me to finish college), I would have paid over $30,000 in rent. That was NOT going to be me. I wanted to INVEST in my future. I didn’t want to be stuck with a huge student loan debt, nor did I want to flush my rent down the toilet. So I did what any 18 year old would do in their 2nd semester. I decided I was going to buy a house.
I met with Suzi Boyle to chat about what I would qualify for. She was amazing. She believed in me. Even with a $15,000/year paycheck, she went up to bat for me. She approached the president of the lending company (back when lending was more personal) and told them that she trusted that I would be a good buyer for them. I’m not sure what else she told them, but I do know that I did end up getting the loan!
I paid $58,000 for my 1200 sq ft condo in the middle of Boise, right near the Boise Towne Square Mall. I was so proud of myself, but not that surprised. Remember? I was always a dreamer.
Planning for.
With dreamers, there are goals. So for me, I had goals all throughout my life.
- Finish High School
- Buy House
- Do Mission Work
- Finish College
- Build House
- Marry
- Children
- Business
- Build Dream Home
- ?
What’s next?
2019 is Going to Be BIG.
With all of the working-out, podcast-listening, goal-making I’ve been doing over the last 2 and half months, my dreams are the biggest they’ve ever been. I don’t even see a ceiling at this point. Write a book? Done. Make 5x what I’ve ever made in a year? No problem. Achieve a goal that is frightening to even think about? No-brainer.
Getting to My Goals.
I’m excited to get to my goals. But – because I’m a planner – I want to write them down. I want to have the visual representation of what my year will look like. Here are some steps I take to plan out my year.
1. Consider Your Planner
I LOVE planners. I had one all throughout high school and college. As a Music Educator, there were no great planners, so I made my own. My planner was BOMB. It was well laid out and I LOVED using it. Since having my business, however, the planner-idea has gone by the wayside. I use the calendar on my phone, random tablets here and there, journals and sticky notes. I have purchased paper planners in the past, but I usually buy them from Ross or TJ Maxx and they’re cheap and not exactly what I want. This year, however, I am going to try “Plum Planner” (I have a code for those who would like a discount – just email me your email address and I’ll request it). It has customizable tabs and layouts. I LOVE me some vertical space for my days, easily accessible To-Do Lists and Social Media Planning. So – for a little under $50, I’ve ordered my planner. I’ll have to revisit my goals for 2019 at the end of the year to let you know whether or not I think it was a valuable investment.
If you are a paper person or electronics person, it doesn’t matter. What matters is that you actually use whatever it is works for you.
2. Goal-Set
Planning for 2019 should be fun – this is the fun part. Where do you want to be in 12 months? Do you want to make a six-figure income? Are you hoping for more connection with Friends and Family? Will you open your first commercial space? Where do you want to be in terms of health? So many goals to set – so many exciting opportunities to be filled! When considering your goals for 2019, think of the following areas:
- Financial Goals – income, debt paid, savings, college funds, etc.
- Business Goals – revenue, number of clients/parties/new sign-ups, assets acquired, etc.
- Marketing Goals – Blog Posts, Social Media Posts, Emails acquired, new followers, etc.
- Health Goals – weight loss/gain, muscle gain, energy, hormone levels, reflection, etc.
- Relational/Family – spousal appreciation, gain a significant other, spend more time with kids, have a date night, etc.
- Electronic Goals – leave phone in kitchen at night, read maps, utilize PAPER planners :).
So many fun goals to be set! I will share some of mine a little later – when I reflect how I am doing in achieving my goals.
3. Micro-Manage Your Goals
Micro-manage is usually a bad phrase. However, it is used for good in this post! I am currently reading “The Art of Stress-Free Productivity” by David Allen. It’s the second time I’ve read it, but the first time was about 10 years ago. I’ve never struggled with being productive, but being efficiently productive might be a different story. I am hoping this book will help me with that.
Since I am actually reading it and not audible-ing it, I am only on the first chapter. After owning it for a month. BUT – the one thing that has stood out to me in this book is that each LARGE goal – HUGE dream – needs to have separate little tasks assigned to it in order to make it a feasible goal. So – your main goal might be “ORGANIZE KITCHEN”. Under that main goal, you’ll have smaller goals – like “On Monday, I will organize the junk drawer”. And “On Tuesday, I will dust the tops of the cabinets.” So – I’m micro-managing my Goals so that I can perform the smaller tasks that will ultimately take me to that goal.
4. Work on Your Mindset
I know how it is. You’ve labeled yourself: “Well, I really enjoy my cup of coffee on the couch while I play Candy Crush” or “I don’t want to glorify ‘busyness’, so I’m going to just sit” or “I’ve always had a hard time seeing things through, so I’ll just resign to that reality”. Listen – we ALL have our hang-ups. But guess what? That’s YOUR hang up. Guess who can control YOUR hang ups. You and you alone. So start listening to some podcasts, reading (or listening) to some books, surrounding yourself with positive people and EXERCISING! This WILL change your mindset – I promise. And since Mindset is one of my words for 2019, I’m going to pass that right along to you.
5. Make a Word-List for 2019
Most of the time, when people talk about your “word of the year”, they simply mean ONE word. I’m big on getting the whole picture. So – to get the whole picture, I’m going to need to either expound on that word or create a few that encompass what I’m trying to achieve. Think of what you want from planning for 2019 and create a word list. Put that list in front of you – on your bathroom mirror – above your computer – in your pantry – wherever you’re going to see it the most. SEE IT, READ IT, THINK IT. MAKE IT HAPPEN.
I hope this helps you in planning for your year.
I’m ECSTATIC for 2019. I can’t WAIT to see what’s in store. And I’m excited to bring you along in this journey.
