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The more I focus on my goals, talk about goals, write book about goals I realize that a lot of us are going through the exact same emotional roller coaster with our ambitions.
In January, we feel rejuvenated after spending time with family over the holidays and are overly inspired by the idea of a new year and an opportunity to create a brand new you.
In Feb - May, we pursue our goals. Somedays with passion and others with reluctance. But... we try.
Come June-July we realize the sun is out and in full effect and we can finally emerge from our winter slumber... mostly to look really good in a bathing suit on a beach somewhere. Or go to brunch. Or finally start dating again. (Just me?)
Even though I literally wrote the book on goal setting I'll be the first to admit that ever summer I struggle to stick to my routines with the constant allure of brunch + happy hour + looking-really-good-in-a-sundress.
Instead of writing, I'm scheduling drinks with friends.
Instead of creating a companion course for my book, I literally went on an impromptu 10-day couch surfing trek through my hometown spending time with every friend I haven't seen in a while - provided they had an empty couch.
Instead of planning out my next speaking gigs, I've been going out on dates like I'm a contestant on the bachelorette.
Yes, #TheStruggleIsReal.
How Can We Continue To Crush Our Goals Through The Summer?
The answer to this question is obvious, but not intuitive.
Choose the one goal that you want to accomplish... then slack off EVERYWHERE ELSE.
Seriously, you're not required to be an all-around life badass all the time. It's the summer, the sun is shining bright - and there are far too many rooftop bars in New York to sit in the house worried about every possible goal.
How I'm Applying This Philosophy
It's obvious I've lost track of my routines and have been trending away from Superwomen towards super-slacker, but my primary goal for 2018 was to get out of student loan debt.
After paying off 10K in 2017, I started off 2018 with $32K remaining in student loan debt and one goal - to pay it all off. In the first seven months of the year, I paid of $10,647 in student loans!
Through the summer, I've continued to make the same large payments on my student loan debt to continue working towards my big goals.
So even though I haven't been productive, I haven't started my next book or course, I've been eating like crap and not exercising, I've been drinking entirely too much wine (Yes, that's possible)....
I have continued to pay off my debt.
That's all that matters.
Related: How This 28-year-old Increased Her Net Worth By $20,984 in 13 months
How Can You Win The Summer?
If you're looking at your summer and wondering what happened to your ambition, you're not alone. Here's a couple of ideas for what you can do to get your goal-getting life back on track:
Lean Back
Make a firm decision that this is not a goal-getting year for you.
Sometimes we just need a break from life all together. If you firmly decide to take some time for inner reflection, you can stop feeling guilty for not pursuing a goal and enjoy your moment of intentional slowing down.
Course Correct
There is always time to get back on track.
If you have a clear goal for where you want to go, figure out where you are in progress towards it. Next, make a list of all the steps you need to take to get you there. Finally, take out a calendar and plan out when you're going to do each of these steps.
Once you do that, get started!
Start From Scratch
It's mid way through the year and you really haven't done anything towards your goals.
That's perfectly fine! The best time to get started is always today. If you don't have a goal yet, but you're really feeling like a couch potato start with figuring out what change you want to make in your life and why you want to make that change.
Related: How To Set The ONE Goal That Will Change Your Entire Life
Once you have your goal, you can start taking steps to reach it.
Stick To The Plan
This is for the folks that are well on their way, but might be getting a little bored with their goal. (Trust my I'm super tired of my budget! Sometimes I want to go out and order a glass of wine without thinking about my student loans, but these days that just doesn't happen!)
Focus on the reason you're pursuing this goal. Remind yourself what your life will look like at the end of the journey. That vision will keep you going. If you created a vision board, take a look at your dream goals - and if you didn't create one maybe you should. :)
The beautiful weather, endless events and opportunities to see friends and family do make it very difficult to put all of your goals first. Don't feel guilty about taking this time to yourself. Instead, find a way to enjoy this moment by intentionally choosing what you're going to focus on ... and what you will ignore.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Cyrene is a fun and accomplished workshop facilitator, learning and development guru and Human Resources professional. Being at the helm of Thrive Lounge has been a long-time dream. Through vision board workshops she plans to accomplish two-way learning. Sharing her vast years of knowledge to motivate and encourage others; while simultaneously getting the reward of great energy, ideas and questions to ponder back from each group. A super win-win. Please join our Thrive Lounge community so you too can benefit!
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