As we end January 2021, it seemed fitting to make a late 90’s “Friends” Reference… But seriously, let’s check in! How are you doing? Many of us started the year off with so much hopeful anticipation, it is hard to believe we the first full {read more}
… would smell just as sweet. William Shakespeare Sweet and soft… still thorny This frequently paraphrased quote (maybe I hear it more than others) comes from an excerpt of Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet”. The common interpretation is: something is not changed by the name it {read more}
Yesterday was a big day here in the States. Our new President and Vice President were sworn in to office!
Inauguration Day is such a big event for so so many reasons and a beautiful day it was today with sunny skies, a fresh perspective and a general what I compare to ‘first day of school’ vibe. That hopeful anticipation, a little nervous, lots of smiles and unfortunately this year not as many hugs as normal!
An incredible event – not just for those watching, but just think of the President himself (and one day herself) – and of course the many many people it takes to put such a huge day on – the secret service, the entertainers, the stylists, the planners!
Every single person that played a role today *most likely* saw this as a BIG DAY.
Whenever I watch events with world leaders, I have started to wonder what goes through their minds and how they prepared – did they sleep okay the night before? Are they wearing a special pair of socks out of superstition? How many times have they practiced their speech, their performance? Or double checked their paperwork and coordination? Does their wardrobe choice make them feel confident? Is their memory of past etiquette lessons serving them well? How many times have they rehearsed the days events in their minds?
Over the years I have observed those I especially admire or simply want to be more like during these events to determine how I can become better and have also listened to their stories to come to realize that we are ALL human. And all of us being human can take the pressure off because it means it is okay to make a mistake but also reignite your dream because YES that means, YOU TOO can be and do whatever you want!
Either way, preparing ourselves for days like what we saw today – dreams officially coming true should be cherished!
Pick one dream in your life and imagine the day it ‘officially’ becomes true.
What would be thinking the night before the dream is official? Do you have an ideal outfit, hair and makeup for such a big event? How would you feel that first day in your new house? Will you be comfortable wearing the graduation gown overtop of your suit? Are there special products such as waterproof mascara to purchase? What thoughts will go through your mind when you hold your first published and printed book?
I hope you get that giddy happy feeling thinking about whatever it is on your heart!
Life is… Life is… Alllright be honest what word came to mind after the … ? Sweet? Good? Blah? Don’t even want to talk about it?? Our lives are made up of lots of days, (according to google women live on average to be about {read more}
Please note today’s post is the first to include a bit of ‘story time’ with background on how I arrived on the self improvement journey. <3 New Year! New me? Made it to day 14 of the new year! A bit of research {read more}
Intention setting provides a deliberate aim going into any day, meeting, phone call and especially workouts!
As we go into a new week: the second full week of 2021, let’s keep the momentum of goal creation and dreaming big going!
Throughout life you may have been told slow-down to speed up with the classic tortoise and hare race. Today we are going to make this concept come even more to life, using “Intention Setting”. Deliberately planning and adjusting our energy to the activities of our days and lives.
My understanding of this fable is that there are two competitors, one slow and steady, and the other full of zeal and naturally fast.
Each approach the race in their own way:
The tortoise continuously moves ahead, slow and steady. Seemingly not worried about winning, just making progress. Meanwhile his competitor speeds up, takes the lead but stops to sleep; each time he awakens to find the tortoise has passed him.
There are multiple lessons that could be taught using this story – for today’s purposes, we are going to go with the: slow and steady wins the race.
In case you have never heard of the Aesop’s Fables classics – I found a link on Amazon that seemed to be the ‘truest’ version. There were lots of cute, newly illustrated versions too! Please note this is an affiliate link.
Intention, defined as: “An aim or plan.” by Oxford (aka Google’s dictionary). How often do you go about your day with a particular target in mind? I have found that the more routine an activity has become, the greater chance my aim is forgotten.
A silly but useful example is something like showering – okay perhaps this is no longer the habit it was pre-pandemic, but it still (hopefully) is a daily…? occurrence. Most likely we are not declaring, “I AIM TO BE CLEAN!” before we jump on in to the shower. More likely we go through the motions half asleep and be singing to ourselves the entire time! Therefore, setting an intent for this type of activity might not be necessary.
On the opposite end of the spectrum let us consider the annual review with your leader at work. In most cases, this type of formal conversation is THE chance to highlight your strengths and improvement areas. Typically in hopes of receiving feedback, recognition and even a promotion. This example shows the importance of being prepared and confident at the very least! Setting a specific intent for this type of an appointment is a game-changer! Going to your annual review with specific intents empowers you to stay focused, confident and prepared!
1. Build a relationship with my leader
2. Identify two areas of opportunity
3. Learn which of my abilities my leader thinks is my biggest strength
In between these two extremes, there are the ever changing activities of our day and specific goal- related tasks. As easy as it could be to complete our day to day activities, checking them off the list; being deliberately intentional about getting the most out of each activity leads to a more fulfilling day (and therefore life!). It is my personal experience that setting intentions by appointment or to-do allows me to give my full attention to each activity. It raises my energy level, allowing me to go from one activity or meeting to the next confidently.
Activities with set intentions have greater meaning and thus better outcomes than those that do not.
Let us use our previous example of the Annual Review; below are listed four more intentions that might apply better to your situation:
With each of these intentions comes the need for individual preparation, potentially differing time requirements and will result in different outcomes.
Timing:
Tools:
Once you have your calendar, appointments, to-do list in front of you and have your inspirational tools nearby or front of mind: Next to each appointment, write the intent you have in mind. The intentions should line up with your overall vision for your week, the goals you are working toward and the other people and personalities specific to the appointment.
For example:
Monday, January 11, 2021
9
10
11
Noon
1
2
3
Appointments & To-Dos
Project Status Update
Train Account Managers
Compile Notes & Send
Lunch & Walk Bianca
Whiteboard Session
Focus Time
Team Meeting
Intentions
Provide meaningful update & #s
Educate and answer questions
Stay organized & communicate
Be healthy and enjoy dog time
Ideate, collaborate & progress
Give attention to priorities
Inform, Listen & Plan
I would love to hear your experiences with this concept, especially if you are trying it for the first time!
Please comment below.
Before we jump into today’s blog post. After the recent historical events which occurred yesterday in the United States it is with hesitation that this post goes up today. After reflection, today’s topic lends itself well. When we may need stability within ourselves or find ourselves asking {read more}
Thank you for so many sweet comments, texts and messages on the vision board and goal-setting posts. Happiness fills my heart to know that this site is becoming a source of inspiration! Now that we’ve explored the visual and verbal side to our goals, it {read more}
Over the years, goal setting has become the one habit that has brought the most deliberate success. One of these days we will dive a bit deeper into why goal setting did not originally come natural to me and how I have cultivated my mind to want to sit down and organize my life in this way.
Yesterday’s post was potentially more fun for most. I can assure you I would much rather dream big, and find pictures that represent the aesthetic I’m going for rather than sit down and write out specifically what I am going to do to get where I want to go. As much as the writing out part is not as fun for me, it does produce massive results through specific focus and solidifying the potential steps.
I have also found that writing my goals and plans allows me to truly reflect on what I actually want. The process of writing out the words allows me to put the intangible into a tangible form where I can fully express truly what it is I am wanting and why.
Fortunately we live in a time where information is so accessible and goal setting doesn’t have to be a re-creation of the wheel each time, HOWEVER, and that is a big however, I do believe finding ones own techniques to get to your goals is most important. What works for me, or anyone else, might not necessary work for you.
If you are new to this, please use this as a guide but always remember to put your own spin on things, test different ways out and determine what works BEST for you. When it comes to goal setting, something I found is that the harder I had to ‘effort’ to make something happen, the more likely it just wasn’t for me. The things that were for me came with hard work, small attitude adjustments and once in awhile a pep talk but I wouldn’t feel like I was uphill the entire way.
This post will go through a goal setting strategy using the focus areas from my vision board creation. Enjoy!
Whether it be my daily journaling, monthly reflections or yearly goal setting, my first step is to fully be present. Meaning, set aside any distractions. Give yourself an ample amount of time to complete this exercise.
Typically, I will make some coffee or tea, put some soothing music on and do even 5 minutes of meditation before I begin.
It is helpful to have already selected a theme for your year, this should be something somewhat broad, potentially just a word that means something to you. I talked a bit about this in my vision board post and gave some ideas, check it out here. My theme for 2021 is: CREATE.
My word of the year came easily to me this season because I knew I was ready to step into a season of decreasing my consumption of media and increasing my output. Being a creator has been something long overdue for me and I knew by using this word to theme my year it would be a daily reminder of my purpose in life.
In years past my word of the year has not come as easily. Last year it was ‘Celebrate’ and well… we all know how that went (insert laugh track here).
The important part when selecting your theme is that when you read the word or see it, it speaks to you and has meaning to you.
If you have created focus areas during your vision board session, or have particular categories of goals in mind, start by writing those down, almost as an outline.
As an example my focus areas for 2021 are:
It’s time to set your goals. At this point, you have given yourself the space to DREAM BIG, organize your thoughts and get clear on how you want the year to feel, as well as categorize into your top focus areas. Now is the time to be realistic and most importantly, EXCITED. Once this step is complete you will be well on your way!
Using your previous brainstorm and theme for the year. List up to 3 goals per focus area. It will be important that each goal has 3 parts:
Whenever I have embarked on any type of personal development or goal setting, the most encouraging examples are personal and from the heart. To keep things real, here are my goals, by focus area for 2021; I have decided to timebox my goals into month, so these are specific to January 2021. I will provide updates on progress 🙂
I tend to be rather intense when I set goals, so one of the things I’d like to keep in mind as I go about January, is to make sure I am enjoying the process and not just making a tick mark at the end of each day!
Okay! Now it is your turn!
If you are up for it, comment below your top goals or just one you are most excited about!
