It’s midyear and that makes it the ideal time to see how you’re going with your goals for the year. You remember those? Those things that back in January you decided would be a good idea?
Do you remember what your goals were for this year?
I must confess that I hadn’t thought about my own goals in more than general terms for a couple of months. I had to go and look them up. I had to remember where I’d written them down. Just doing that was a process but I found them eventually.
Some of my goals are pretty much on track. I’m just over 20,000 words into a novel that I want to be 50,000 words long by the end of the year. So achieving that goal is still a possibility. (We’ll ignore the fact that I’m deep in a plot hole right now. When I dig myself out, I’ll write like crazy and still make it.)
Another goal was to have the Boots That Fit self-help book and workbook published by the end of the year. That book is being read by a few select people so that I can have their feedback. Then we just need an edit and a book cover and we’re good.
So far, so good.
Other goals, though, are in a bit of trouble.
One of my goals for this year was to be able to run 5 km in under half an hour. Let me tell you how much running I am doing right now.
None.
Zero minutes.
No running at all.
Why? My knees have started hurting so much that I’m seeing a physiotherapist. So instead of running, I am doing strength exercises and hoping that I can run again in the future.
Does that make me a failure?
No. It just means that I need to reassess that goal.
There are other goals like that too. Goals that I thought were reasonable to achieve in 2023, but at this stage look far beyond my reach. Goals that I need to rethink, reassess.
And that’s the good news. We can reassess our goals at any time. A goal should stretch you but it shouldn’t break you. If you find that the situation has changed, or that what you thought was within your grasp is consistently out of reach, even with a big stretch, then you need to reassess. Change the goal. It’s perfectly OK to do that.
It is better to change your goals, to reassess and think again and make another goal that requires a stretch but not too much of a stretch, than to just stop and give up. You can change your goals at any time. It might take a little longer to get where you’re going. It might be a smaller mountain that you climb, or it might mean a sharp turn in direction to head to a different dream. All of these are much better options than just giving up.
So take some time this midyear to assess your progress, and maybe to change your goals. It’s not failure, it’s just part of the process.
Did you set goals in January? Do you need to reassess? Or maybe set some goals now? I’d love to hear about it. Write to me at ruth@ruthamos.com.au or tweet me @aquietlifeblog or find me at Ruth Amos Author on Facebook.
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A Quiet Life 