Setting sustainable goals
The new year is a time when many people set goals for things they want to do more (or less) of. The thought of a fresh start gets many people thinking about things they want to change with their health and habits.
How many years have you or someone you knew set a goal to start working out or drinking more water, and by the end of January (if not sooner!), you or they are back to old routines?
Almost all of us can raise our hand to that, so let’s dig in!
Why it doesn’t work
Oftentimes, New Year’s goals are big, sweeping changes. Going from no regular workout routine to wanting to exercise every morning before work. Reading social media every night before bed to wanting to read 50 books by the end of the year. Averaging 6 hours of sleep a night to getting a fully rested 8 hours of sleep.
There are a few challenges that come up and can derail those great ideas.
The goals focus on adding something new that will take time without considering where the time will come from. There will still only be the same 24 hours in the day and 7 days in the week!
The goals are big steps with no plan to work up to them. If you’re not a runner, you’re not going to go run a marathon or 10k on your first race. We can’t expect that with other goals either!
The goals can feel “all-or-nothing,” and when there is an off-day or off-week, it can feel harder to pick it back up. If you’re a perfectionist, you know this feeling all too well.
What are sustainable goals?
When your goals are sustainable, they fit naturally into your life and are easier to maintain in the long term. The goals are things you truly want to work towards, not just things you feel you “should” do. Sustainability also means having flexibility for those days or weeks when things get busy and other stuff gets in the way, because it will happen!
So as you’re thinking about things you want to work towards in the new year, let’s think about things that will help you set more sustainable and realistic goals.
What helps in setting goals?
Many times, the goals are set with the end goal in mind. It’s important to consider the steps to get there. Just like a runner has to work up to running the 26.2 miles to complete a marathon, what are the small steps for working up to your goal?
What it looks like: start with baby step goals. Think about what is the one next step toward that goal, and set that as the goal. Once that is established, set the one next step as the next goal. For example, if your goal is to work out 3-4 mornings a week, but right now you’re getting up with just enough time to make coffee and sign on for work, then the first small step goal might be to work on waking up and getting out of bed earlier. Once you have that down, you might start weaving in some light stretching into your morning routine or adding in a shower like you will want to do after future workouts. Once that is established, you can move the wake-up time up again and build in more movement in whatever way feels good for you!
You may be someone who can set 1 or 2 goals and just focus on those, but how many times have you set multiple ongoing goals, all to start on January 1st, and keep doing them for the next 365 days?
What it looks like: Pick one thing (2 max) to focus on at a time. Once you have one goal established and in a consistent routine, then add on a new goal. You don’t have to wait until the next new year to set or add new goals!
Setting goals for the whole year can make them feel really big, and harder to get back on track if things fall off a bit. By narrowing down the window for your goals, it allows you more room to restart the next week or month, or modify each week as you build up or adjust for those busier times. It also allows you to focus on what needs to be a priority at that time rather than feeling you’re stuck with what your winter-self thought would be good for you by the spring and summer.
What it looks like: Set goals just for the next week or month, and modify/adjust each month as you go. Check-in with what’s working, what you need a little more or less of, and what feels more important to focus on for right now.
The busy days or chaotic holiday weeks will come again in the new year, so it’s important that your goals have the flexibility to accommodate them. Setting goals that require you to do it 100% of the time or “every morning” are a recipe for disaster.
What it looks like: Set goals that give flexibility, like getting movement 3 days a week but not assigning which days of the week that will be. Or sticking to an eating-out budget rather than limiting it to a certain number of times a month.
Ready to make some changes in the new year?
Get connected with Kimberleigh
If you’re someone who knows that accountability and support work well for you in those goals becoming a reality, Kimberleigh can help. Online therapy for overthinkers with Mindfully Balanced Therapy can help you clarify goals that are aligned with your values and support you in developing sustainable plans to achieve them. Regular therapy appointments can also help provide some accountability alongside the therapy work to support you in sticking with those goals.
If you’re experiencing choice paralysis or decision fatigue in your goal setting, Kimberleigh can help you overcome those overthinking tendencies and find clarity!
If this sounds like something that would be helpful for you, contact Kimberleigh today to set up a free consult call and get started on making your goals a reality!
