Well, the past 2 days I've walked you through my personal strategy for goal setting in the new year and shared two very important questions you need to ask when determining your goals. Today, I want to give you one last piece of the puzzle that will hopefully make it all come together.
One of the things I love about a new year is that it feels like a fresh start. I'm one of those people who feels very attached to natural boundaries. What I mean is I love the naturally occuring start/stop points that exist. For example: Monday is the start of the week, so Monday is usually when I implement a larger change like starting a new exercise plan or routine for the kiddos. The same is true for the first of the month or the start of a new season. I don't know why but I love the feeling of starting new on those dates. So naturally the start of a new year is my favorite!
Here's the problem with a new year though. We all have a tendency to focus on the new things we want to do and forget that a huge part of our new year should include asking the question:
WHAT DO I NEED TO STOP DOING IN 2015?
At the end of the day you can't just keep adding more and more stuff. You'll be miserable. Maybe your 2015 goals need to be about dropping the good stuff so you can pick up the best stuff. Maybe your focus should be clearing out room for you to breathe and enjoy life a little more. Start by listing your priorities and then look at your calendar. Mark off the things that are preventing you from living the values you claim are important to you.
Sure that book club is fun but is it keeping you from saying yes to something better? The money is nice but is the overtime at work really worth more than the family time you're sacrificing to get it? I know having all the new technology and gadgets is fun but is it worth the strain it puts on you financially?
What do you look back on in 2014 and think, "That was dumb. Why did I do that?"? Why not make 2015 the year you don't do that again. You don't get into more debt. You don't invest in the wrong relationship. You don't treat work like the most important thing. You don't continue to be jealous.
What do you need to stop doing in 2015? In order to accomplish what God wants for you this year you need to start by stopping.
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