{Monthly Series} January 2018 Goals

Why do we set goals? What are we trying to accomplish by setting goals whether weekly, monthly or even yearly? We all have different reasons why we set goals, for me personally it is so I have a target.

Those who know me know I am a to-do list orientated person who loves nothing more than ticking items off. I feel a sense of accomplishment knowing I have been able to something off my never ending to-do list. What I love about goal setting is that it allows me to organise my time and resources more efficiently.

Back in 2013 I set out monthly goals to motivate me to work on my long term vision. Setting goals as I have mentioned before is a great way to plan out your life.  For me personally it gives me a sense of direction and each month I strive hard for betterment. Life can sometimes became overwhelming, that’s one of the reasons I don’t like weekly goals. Monthly goals are long enough for me to intentionally work on myself and the life I wish to lead. I have also found, setting goals at the beginning of the month helps me to plan out the month.

As per routine here on A July Dreamer, I make it a point to review the previous months goals. December 2017 goals marked the end of the year so the goals where all focused on the festive season. But I ensured to add in goals centered around my post graduate course and blog commitments. Whether I get to complete those goals before the month end or not is another matter. The idea is to have something to strive for each month otherwise I get overwhelmed with everything going on around me. I have a strong belief that if I don’t succeed its ok to move it forward until I do.

December 2017 Goals

So much was going on during the month of December but regardless I set out some goals I wanted to work on. As per tradition, let’s review how I got on with the goals;

Christmas Goals

As a to-do list orientated person, I put together Christmas goals I want to accomplish;

• Christmas Presents for the family – ACHIEVED
• Plan day to spend with parents – ACHIEVED
• Complete all travels before Christmas – ACHIEVED

Postgraduate Goals

As you might know I am currently in the 2nd year of my Masters in Pharmacovigilance course. These are the goals I wished to work on;

• Complete 2 assignments from previous course due December 12th – ACHIEVED
• Start on the new assignment due in January 2018 – ACHIEVED

Blog Commitment Goals

I am sure every blogger had set blogging commitments that they wished to accomplish before Christmas. Here is what I planned;

• Schedule posts for the Christmas week – ACHIEVED
• Comply with all collaboration deadlines, complete earlier if possible – ACHIEVED
• Prepare income report for 2017 – ACHIEVED, read it HERE.
• Take a break from blogging during the festivities – FAILED!!

Looking through the goals, I am happy with the progress I made with the December goals. Because it was such a busy month, I did not completely switch off during the festive period. But I was able to take several hours a day off social media and just meditate in my home.

January 2018 Goals

With the start of a new month and a New Year it is important to ensure we set the right goals with the right tone. I try to set short term achievable goals which I incorporate into my daily life. This makes it easily to accomplish them than trying to be unrealistic and setting goals I have no chance accomplishing. That’s not to say I set easy goals, no, but setting smart goals that helps to shape my everyday well being.

Travel Goals

Those who know me know how much I love to travel, with that in mind, I am re-starting the #Take12Trips. I am excited to say we I have already booked myself a couple trips for the first quarter of the year.

• Prague, Czech Republic – it’s been two years since I last went to Prague and I am excited to be going again.
• Toulouse, France – I hadn’t heard of this city before until I show a deal for £10 return flight.
• Tuscany, Italy – we are fortunate to be reviewing a country house in Pisa. We are making this a family trip and so excited.
• Luxembourg city – Luxembourg – I decided to once and for all visit this small country. It has been on my list for the longest time and found a cheap flight to Frankfurt and bus to Luxembourg.
• Athens, Greece – regular readers would have seen this city on all my travel bucketlists and glad to be fulfilling it this year.

Postgraduate Goals

As I work to finish my second year, there are some goals I need to accomplish this year. But this month specifically I have two goals I wish to accomplish;

• Submit the assignment due this month
• Save up money for the module next month

Blog commitment goals 

This month promises to be a busy one for sure, with two trips abroad and one locally, I only have one weekend. Those who don’t know I work 9-5 and only blog at night or during the weekend which can be tough. I have a few goals to work on;

• Write up the posts on Prague trip and accommodation plus social shares
• Review all the products pending from December 2017
• Work on my pinterest accounts to draw traffic to the blog

And there you have it, my January 2018 goals which I am very hopeful I will accomplish. I posed a couple of questions at the beginning of the post and hopefully I have answered them. If there is one thing to take from why we set goals is this;

To help us identify our destination;

To set out plans we wish to accomplish;

and To help organise our lives as best as we could.

Have you set any goals for yourself this year? Or will you be soon?

Happy New Year!!!