Happy New Year everyone! Can you believe we’re in 2025? I don’t know about you, but I’m still recovering from December 2024!

After 3 weeks of having the kids at home (with a fair bit of rain in that time!), they are finally back at care today, so I'm able to go back to working on the business! I'm actually in shock that we are already halfway through the month and meanwhile, it feels like I've accomplished nothing! But as my mentor and business coach says, you DON'T need to have everything set and put together at the start of the year, so don't buy into that hype and put unnecessary pressure on yourself!

As with the start of each new year, I often have “resolutions”, or goals, rather, that I’d like to achieve. And I’ll be honest…I usually start off well, and then come March/April, things tend to fizzle out or life just gets in the way (who’s with me here?). But if the last couple of years have taught me anything, it’s that life is way too short not to give it your best shot and live it to the fullest! And most of the time, the biggest roadblock you encounter is yourself/your mindset!

So instead of focusing on the things I haven't been able to get done these past 3 weeks, I'm choosing to focus on the things I HAVE been able to do, like spending quality time with my family, starting some new habits, decluttering and cleaning the entire house, etc. AND, even though I haven't outlined my goals for 2025 in detail yet, I'm taking it as a win that I at least have a general idea of what they are, and now that I'm back at work, I can focus on fine-tuning them for the rest of this month (and if you’re in the same situation, I’ll share my goal-planning tips below to help you get started)!

The bottom line is, it's never too late to start or to change something, including yourself - you just need to have the right mindset, and be willing to! So keep watching this space, because I sense that 2025 will bring about A LOT of change, and I have to admit that for once, I’m a little excited for it! So here's to 2025 and living life to the fullest, whatever it may bring! :)

Goal Planning Tips

1. Adapt the SMART system to work for YOU

When I first saw the SMART system for goal planning, I was instantly overwhelmed! And I would get stressed trying to make my goals fit their system, and would get frustrated because some goals are REALLY difficult to get specific or to measure outcomes. Then I’d end up wasting so much time just trying to get my goals right instead of actually working on them! So my biggest tip is to make the SMART system work for YOU! Use the principles (because they ARE important and effective), but don’t get so caught up trying to follow them that nothing actually gets done, or that you lose motivation and confidence in yourself, because that’s not the point!

2. Start incorporating your action steps into your daily routine

Once you’ve got your overall goals, start breaking them down into action steps, ie, what do you need to do to get there? And once you’ve done that, go a step further and see which action steps can be incorporated into your daily routine! If you’re doing something often enough, it’ll become a habit, and it’ll make it that much easier for you to achieve your goal! Remember, it's all about that mindset, so let's help it however we can!

3. Start small and build from there

Start with a few small but easily achievable goals/action steps, then once you're comfortable with them, you can build from there! By starting small, you should be able to give yourself a few quick and easy wins, and this motivation will carry you over to then tackle the big stuff!

4. Do frequent goal and plan reviews

As the SMART system says, your goals need to be measurable. Life will always get in the way, and no matter how much we try, sometimes it’s unavoidable to go off track with our goals. This is where it helps to have frequent goal and plan (action steps/habits) reviews so you can see if your goal is still achievable, if you need to change anything, and if so, what needs to be changed? I’d recommend at least quarterly reviews – you can do monthly if you like, but I feel like that might put too much pressure because let’s face it, things don’t necessarily happen or change in a month!

I hope these help you set and kick some goals this year! I'll be cheering you on, and again, remember that it's never too late to start!