With 5 months left in the year, achieving your goals can seem impossible.
But before you decide to delay your goals, listen in as I discuss three steps to take your big goals and make them happen this year.
You don’t need a new year, month, or week to begin.
In this episode, I walk you through the process of reflecting on your current habits, routines and actions, breaking them down, and creating an actionable plan to get the goals accomplished.
Show Links:
Show Takeaways:
- Believe in the goals you set for yourself and your ability to actually achieve them.
- Learn how to break down your goals to develop strategies and habits to make incremental progress every day.
- Create an actionable plan to make real progress toward your goals.
Rather read than listen? ⬇️
I recently had a client tell me at the end of our 6 months together that I have a gentle tough love thing about me, where I tell it like it is but in a way that doesn’t necessarily trigger a defense response.
I have also had a former student and dear friend tell me that when she listens to my coaching and even this podcasts, she often feels called out.
I’ll say this: subtle and I aren’t very good friends. I feel that wasting precious time dancing around the truth isn’t helping anyone. But I also don’t believe in dropping bombs just to create waves. I try to share truths and help shake off potential excuses holding you back without my delivery being so blunt and off-putting that you shut down.
I am your coach and your 2nd biggest fan. (You have to be your own biggest fan). But what this means is that I will push you beyond your excuses because I believe in you.
All of that to say that I have something to say that you may or may not want to hear:
As of the recording of this episode, you have roughly 5 months left in this year to achieve the big goals you have set for yourself.
And you may be saying, “Well, Erin, I set these big goals when I thought I had 12 months or the whole year. There is no way I am going to be able to achieve that goal in less than half that time.”
Okay, I can see how that might feel hard and maybe a bit impossible. But I’ll tell you what I tell my daughter when she wants to quit something because it feels hard: “Lots of stuff is hard. It doesn’t necessarily get easier. You have to get better, keep working at it, and go until it becomes easier for you.”
Because what is the alternative? To stay exactly where you are until January AND then maybe start working on these big goals? Are you going to waste almost half a year more because you didn’t work on or get far enough on your goals from January to June?
You don’t have to start on a Monday, on the 1st of the month, or in January. If you need a fresh start to give you that nudge, every morning when the sunrises is your fresh start. Every hour is your fresh start.
Changing, growing, leveling up, reaching for big goals is hard enough. Rather than putting more obstacles in your way and reaching for excuses why you can’t, what if you focused on how you CAN?
So the secret? Well, technically it’s a two-part answer.
The first is buy in. You have to believe in the goals you set for yourself and your ability to actually achieve them. Do the goals matter to you? Why? What sacrifice would be necessary for you to work for it? The price of your ideal dream life is the life you are currently living, no matter what it is that you are working towards. The habits, routines, and actions that you currently have are giving you the results you currently have. If you want something different, you have to do something different. So before I give you the second part of the secret, you have to decide right now if you are willing to actually do what it takes. Are you in?
Okay, if you are here, I’m gonna assume that you said yes to that last question. So here is part 2 of the secret: To map out how you’ll achieve those goals. Don’t just wish for it. Lay out your pathway for it.
I know. Probably not as sexy as you thought. But hear me out:
Having an action plan will help you make that vision your reality.
An action plan gives you the clarity, direction, and confidence you need to move forward on your big goals.
It outlines the steps you need to take next, in the distant future, and those that you should just say no to.
There are thousands of entrepreneurial gurus on my instagram feed at any given time. I’m sure you experience the same thing. There is a wealth of information, strategies, advice, and— yes, overwhelm.
The question actually isn’t “what should I do?!” but instead “what should I do first?”
We are told that building a funnel, or a tiny offer, or a Facebook group, or using hashtags, or leveraging partner campaigns, or leaning into Pinterest, or creating Reels, or any number of other strategies is going to fast-track our success and get us where we want to go, faster & easier.
And who doesn’t want that?!
But the problem arises when you can’t discern what to do next and try to do all the things. You are not only ineffective but burnt out by the must-dos, to-dos, and should-dos others swear by.
But a good action plan can keep you moving forward even amidst the shiny objects and distractions being thrown in your direction every time you open Facebook.
An action plan can actually create a decision filter for you so you can better prioritize opportunities as they arise and stay on track towards your goals, rather than chasing a wild hare of an idea just because Suzie Entrepreneur told you to.
It helps you stay aligned with how you work, what works for you, and what is truly important to you. (See a theme here yet?)
You know your next right steps because you’ll start with your vision & goals, then break down your goals into weekly strategies & daily habits to make incremental progress every day.
The result? A happier, less stressed, more successful YOU.
If it was easy, everyone would do it. But that doesn’t mean it has to be hard.
Action Step:
I always like to end each episode with an action step that you can take right now to help you move forward and begin to implement immediately. Here is your action step for this episode: List out what goals you had for yourself at the beginning of the year and what progress you’ve made thus far. Then journal out what it would take for you to get back on track.
