Creating Actionable Goals

HAPPY NEW YEAR, everyone! (i.e my family 😄). I’m starting off the new year with a commitment to consistent blogging, and what better topic than creating actionable goals! Every year, there’s this trend of creating vision boards, but I shake things up a bit and dive into the world of setting goals that we can actually make happen.

Don’t get me wrong I’m all about vision boards, but this year, I’m switching it up. Instead of just admiring pretty pictures, I’ve got a list of goals I want to tackle each month. Last year, I made a bingo card with all my goals, mainly because everyone else was doing it. But guess what? When it came to planning for this year, I realized I needed some real action items on my monthly checklist to smash those goals. So, I’m officially embracing the checklist life. You might remember from my studying/working from home tips blog post—I’m all about those lists. Little goals, big results. It’s the secret sauce to making things happen.

Creating your vision board

A vision board is like a visual roadmap—it can be a physical board, a paper, or even a digital document filled with your goals, ideas, and images that paint a vivid picture of the life or achievements you’re aiming for. If you’re not familiar with the concept, no worries! And here’s the cool part—your vision board doesn’t have to be a traditional physical board. Get creative and make it in any way that suits you best! The key is capturing your aspirations in a format that resonates with you. Personally, I’m all about digital vision boards—flexibility at its finest!

Creating actionable goals for the month is all about breaking down that big vision into manageable steps. Start by envisioning what you want to achieve by the end of the year—paint the big picture. Now, ask yourself how crucial these goals are to you. Are they top-of-the-list priorities or do they hinge on something else falling into place first? Get clear on the importance, and then, let’s dive into the nitty-gritty of what needs to happen each month to get there.

Breaking your vision board into actionable goals 

After answering those key questions, diving into creating a vision board is the next move. Canva is like the playground for this, right? My personal process mirrors everyone else’s. I write down all the things I want to conquer in different areas—health, relationships, work, finances, and lifestyle. Up next is the fun part—I look for pictures on Pinterest or Google. But here’s the twist: I personally search for images that stir up the kind of emotions I’m after.

Once I’ve got this emotional vibe and photos going, I piece together my vision board. Whether it’s a desktop screensaver or a phone screensaver, it becomes this daily dose of motivation and clarity. It’s like my personal visual guide pointing me toward those goals!

Here is a vision board of mine created on Canva a few years ago.

Tips for creating monthly goals

Break down your goals: After putting down a few ideas and having a folder of pictures, I break everything down into bullet points of what I would like to accomplish for January. But remember to not plan beyond that- I’ve come to find that these bite-size pieces are very helpful by using a habit tracker. For instance, I want to read my Bible every single day this for a specific month I’ll go ahead and put that on my habit tracker/goal tracker for the month. I have created a few trackers in the past; it comes in handy when focusing on smaller goals because building a habit helps you achieve those yearly goals. 

Be Patient: The plan is to accomplish all your goals within a certain timeframe. Obviously, circumstances may arise where you’re not able to accomplish all your goals, and I think that’s OK. Be patient with yourself, remembering that your goals are your own and that you are not in competition with anyone to accomplish them. If you break your pattern, start over. Just remember that you have decided to set these goals for yourself, and you have all that it takes to accomplish them.

Find a theme: With all that being said, I would also suggest having a theme for yourself this year. This is something that my church does every year. We have a theme that we focus on that aligns with our prayers and our duties. So for me this year, outside of my church’s theme, I have decided the theme for this year will be discipline, and in some more ways than one, also consistency. I know what these themes mean to me and what they have done for me in the past, and I would like to reestablish them for this year in order for me to accomplish my goals.

How do you keep yourself accountable?

Get a Journal/Habit Tracker: I mentioned having a habit tracker earlier; how do you go about creating one or finding one? Habit trackers are great for keeping yourself accountable.You can find free downloadable content on various websites, such as Pinterest. You can also purchase some on Etsy or create your own on Canva. I’ve gone ahead and created a bunch in different colors and different fonts, and I’ve made them free right here on this blog. Click on the download button at the end of this post to access my favorite habit tracker.

Journals and planners are another way to keep up with your goals. Here are a few I like:

Papier is a great site for some customized journals and planners. Just a heads up: I do make commissions if you purchase any of the linked products above.(Click on the images to shop.)

And there you have it—my tips for creating actionable goals for the year and the steps to make sure you accomplish them. As always, I hope you found this blog post helpful. Feel free to drop a comment, leave messages, and share it with your friends and family—they might find it helpful too. Here’s to a new year, may you conquer all your goals and see your heart’s desires come to pass.

See you in the next blog post! 🚀