Updating, Adjusting, and Redefining Your Goals
Now that the new year has a few weeks under its belt, you’ve had time to work on the goals you set for yourself over the winter, including any New Year’s resolutions you might have made. However, you’ve begun to hit some snags. Don’t worry, this is a completely normal part of the process! Truth be told, everyone hits snags now and then. The idea is to roll with them rather than get hung up on them.
If you’ve found yourself facing a roadblock or two, take a moment to check in with your goals and determine if any updates or adjustments are needed. When we first set our goals, they are made based on what we knew at the time, but life has a way of changing on us. If something has shifted or information is no longer relevant, it is more than acceptable to change our goals accordingly.
The most important thing to consider is to make sure your goals are clearly defined and whether or not certain things need to be modified, such as frequency, duration, and time frame.
Take another look at the SMART framework and determine if your goals continue to be:
● Specific
● Measurable
● Achievable
● Relevant
● Time-bound
Action Items for Updating Your Goals
If you’ve determined your goals need redefining to keep them on track, here are a few things you can do. Recognize what needs to be adjusted and celebrate how far you’ve come. Consider your progress and what more is needed to complete your goals. As you move forward, keep track of your continued progress to give yourself a barometer of how well (or how poorly) your expectations are being met. Seeing concrete data of your progress might be the motivator you need to complete your goals successfully. Take outside factors into consideration. Certain life events can throw a wrench into your goal setting and might upset the whole apple cart. If new situations or opportunities change or affect your goals, you’ll need to pivot to stay on track.
If you have several goals, which ones are the highest priority? They might be different from what they were when you had originally set them. Take stock of what is important to you today and pour your efforts into those goals first.
If your timelines were too optimistic or not realistic, give yourself grace to reset your timelines according to how far you’ve come and how far you’ve yet to go. Perhaps your goals are too big as a whole and would be better served broken into smaller steps to make them more easily manageable and achievable. Keep on task by giving yourself smaller goals within your larger goals and celebrate each passing milestone. This is not only good for your state of mind, but helps you stay motivated as well.
Finally, seek the wisdom of friends, mentors, or colleagues for any further advice or observations they might have with regard to your goals. It could be they’ll see snags or successes in your blindspots. They might even be able to help keep you accountable.
All in all, adjusting your goals is a normal part of life. By learning to roll with the changes, you’re growing along with your goals. With a little modification here and there, you’re more likely to achieve what you originally set out to do.
