Goal Setting Tips For 2021

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I haven’t set new year’s resolutions in years. After several years of feeling like a failure at the slightest slip up I decided that, for me, resolutions just weren’t a positive force in my life. It was high time they were retired like every new year’s resolution I’d ever made. Saying this, I love a challenge and am always trying to better myself in one way or another. So I decided to replace new years resolutions with goals – a work in progress, rather than an ‘all or nothing’. This year feels different, what with us being in a global pandemic and all. Initially, I struggled with structuring my goals for the new year. I’ve come out the other side, so I thought I’d share some of my goal setting tips for 2021, in case others are having similar difficulties.

Tania, a white woman with tied up brown hair, sits cross legged on the grass in her garden. Her wheelchair is just behind her right shoulder. Tania is wearing glasses with dark green lenses, an orange top and black cut off trousers. Held to her eye is her camera.

I spent the first couple of weeks of December trying to come up with ‘meaningful’ goals, whatever they are. Everything I came up with felt like a small step to achieving some bigger goal. I’ve been finding it hard to get my head around what my long-term and even mid-term goals might be. So instead of forcing it, I’m going to allow myself to be content with my short-term goals, happy in the knowledge that they are a step to something bigger. Even if I can’t quite fathom what this might be at present. 

I’ve been on a little journey to get to the point where I’m ok with not having long term goals. So I thought I’d share some of the things that have helped me set some (hopefully!) achievable goals for the very uncertain year ahead.

When it comes to goal setting, please be gentle with yourself and as much as possible, refrain from comparison – both with others and your pre-pandemic self. To help with this, I’m going to share my thought process but not my personal goals for 2021.

A mirror selfie taken with a white camera, of Tania, a white woman with brown hair. She is wearing glasses with dark green lenses and a black top. The mirror stand is white and rests on a light wood table. In front of the mirror are white roses, a foundation bottle, lipstick bullet and an open highlighter.

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Goal Setting Tips For 2021: Reflect on 2020

Initially, the thought of setting more than a few social media related goals seemed rather daunting. At the start of 2020, we had no idea what was heading our way. And now, we’re living in a world where so much is uncertain. In a lot of ways, we don’t know what challenges the week ahead will bring, let alone a whole year!

I found it really helpful to look back on 2020 to see what I’ve achieved in the past 9 months of pandemic life. Doing this has helped put me in a positive head space and given me a realistic guide to work from for my 2021 goals. By doing this, I’ve been able to set goals to build on what I’ve already achieved during the pandemic so far, as well as adding in things I’d like to work on in other areas of my life.

Goal Setting Tips For 2021: Be Realistic

When setting goals, it’s important to be realistic. Otherwise, we run the risk of not achieving what we want, which can lead us to feeling deflated and frustrated with ourselves. And no one needs this right now!

Tania, a white woman with tied up brown hair, sits cross legged on the grass in her garden. Her wheelchair is just behind her right shoulder. Tania is wearing glasses with dark green lenses, an orange top and black cut off trousers. Round her neck is her camera and she has her phone in her hand.

When thinking about my goals for 2021, I’ve found it helpful to consider whether they would’ve been achievable over the past 9 months. If yes, I’ve considered them realistic. If not, I’ve adjusted my goal to be more manageable. There are a number of ways you can make goals more achievable. This could be by breaking your goal down and focussing on one or two elements. Or it could be by giving yourself more time to reach your goal.

Goal Setting Tips For 2021: Don’t Take On Too Much

Don’t go in all guns blazing. Setting goals that allow you time to rest and relax is paramount. We’re less able to function at our optimum when we’re tired – physically or mentally. 

Pacing myself is something I really struggle with, so it was really important for me to build this into my goals. I adjusted one of my social media targets for 2021 with this in mind. While in theory it would be an achievable goal, I would have to be consistently on top of things for the whole year to reach my target. I felt I was expecting too much of myself, so I scaled down my goal to allow for chronic illness fluctuations and other life events.

A mirror selfie taken with a white camera, of Tania, a white woman with brown hair. She can be seen in the mirror, blurry, wearing glasses with dark green lenses and a black top. The mirror stand is white and rests on a light wood table. In front of the mirror and in focus are white roses, a foundation bottle and a white skincare bottle with a silver lid.

Image contains PR Products from a previous collaboration

Goal Setting Tips For 2021: Wider Context

When making sure we aren’t taking on too much, it’s important to look beyond the pandemic and consider the wider context – our day-to-day responsibilities and other significant events or activities that need our time and energy.

For me, my main consideration is Elise. She is home with me and it’s important that I provide her with an environment where she can flourish. Come September, Elise will be starting nursery school which will give me a couple of child free hours a day during the week. So I’ve set my goals accordingly.

I’ve set myself targets that I can chip away at little by little, between now and the start of the school year. These are things I can dip in and out of when Elise wants some independent play time. I’ve also set some more in-depth goals to start working on in October (to give us time to settle in to the school routine).

A self portrait of Tania, a white woman with brown hair. She is sitting on a white bed with purple floral covers. Tania is wearing glasses with dark green lenses, a mustard yellow jumper and dark jeggings. Sitting in Tania's lap is Elise, her blonde toddler. Elise is wearing a navy top with small white flowers, pink leggings and odd socks. Tania is reading a book with a white cover to Elise.

Goal Setting Tips For 2021: Be Flexible

I think the overarching theme of goal setting for 2021 is to be flexible. With what you want to achieve, the time frame you’re working to, everything!

Getting to know yourself can really help with being flexible. I tried to break my goals down to have some actionable steps for January and struggled. This had a negative impact, which rather defeats the object of having goals. Realising this early on allowed me to take a break and come back to the problem fresh. I was then able to identify that my goals were steps in themselves, to something bigger. This realisation allowed me to accept that it’s perfectly ok not to have long term goals at the moment. It also inspired this blog post, so was productive in itself!

A side view of Tania, a white woman with tied up brown hair, sits cross legged on the grass in her garden. Her wheelchair is just behind her right shoulder. Tania is wearing glasses with dark green lenses, an orange top and black cut off trousers. Held to her eye is her camera.

Goal Setting Tips For 2021: Include Regular Evaluations

Building in regular goal check-ins is a great way of giving yourself permission to reframe and readjust your goals. This can help manage disappointment if something out of your control happens and you’re not able to achieve previously realistic goals.

Remember – if a goal no longer works for you, scrap it or adjust it. Don’t waste your energy on something that no longer enhances your life. And if your only goal is to survive the pandemic, this is 100% valid. None of us needs more pressure in our lives at the moment.

Have you made any new year’s resolutions or goals for 2021?

What has helped you decide what you’d like to achieve?

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