What are your goals for 2014? Let’s see if I can guess… is it one of these?
- Get organized
- Lose weight
- Eat healthier
- Exercise more
- Save money
- Get out of debt
Almost everyone wants something on this list. Why do we keep setting and forgetting the same goals every year if these are the basics of a healthy lifestyle? Let’s step back and talk about goals in general.
All goals should be S.M.A.R.T.
Specific
Measurable
Achievable
Reasonable
Timely.
Your goal to “Save more money” is smart, but it’s not S.M.A.R.T. With a general goal, you’ll never know how well you’re doing. “Saving more money” could mean adding an extra $1 to savings. It’s not going to do much for your budget in the long term.
But, if your goal is to “Save an extra $500 by the end of 2014”, that’s S.M.A.R.T. You have a specific amount, it’s reasonable, you can track your progress and make adjustments to reach your time limit.
Back to 2014 goals – here are some resources that I use to make my goals a reality.
A Scanner
I’ve been tackling “getting organized” as a goal for a few years now, but I’ve been using the S.M.A.R.T. method, so I organized different items each year.
- In 2012, I scanned all of our medical records.
- For 2013, I scanned and saved all my recipes. My grandmother and mother, being great cooks, left me lots of family recipes. Plus, I had a cookbook collection, and lots of magazine and newspaper cutouts. So far, my scanned recipes have been a big plus in my life. They’re easy to find and share, my cupboards aren’t stuffed with paper, and we were able to donate 75% of my cookbooks.
- For 2014, I am scanning all the family photos, slides and movies. This is going to be a big project for me because I’ve become the archiver of family photos as relatives have passed away. I have to admit that I have started a little early with my new all in one printer / fax / scanner.
Websites I’ve used to meet my goals
- TripIt.com is how I organize all of my travel plans in one place – airline confirmations, hotel and car reservations, tours etc. All the information is in one place and easy to access. It’s as simple as forwarded the email receipt to Trip It and it appears on your itinerary.
- For my goal of getting healthier (making better food choices, eating at home more and fitting in exercise), I use LoseIt.com. It’s helped me with my 2013 goal of leading a balanced life and making more time for me. Part of my goal was getting to know the feeds I eat so I can make better choices. LoseIt.com helped me to keep track of my food and to stay balanced (like watching the carbs to protein ratio). The website and app lets you input a recipe and save it for future use. There is a section for exercise too.
What are your tips and resources to help you achieve your 2014 goals? We’d like to know what you do.
To really get your goals started for 2014, you can join my new Facebook group. It’s a month long class that will help you set realistic goals for the year ahead.
A Facebook Group for Your Goals
Join me for the month of January for Taking Charge of Your Finances. Many people want to have more in savings, to spend less, to pay down their debt, save for their children’s education, save for retirement, buy a home, and more. This will be your chance to connect with other like minded people, and get your New Year’s resolution off to a solid start.
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