New Year – Same Old Me – Only Better

Now here’s the thing, most people, myself included, have more than one goal at a time. The happy news is this type of planning applies to ALL goals. In my case, when I took a serious look inward, I discovered I had four main priorities for 2021. These are in no particular order:

• Writing and self-publishing
• Working on health and wellness
• Maintaining the Sharing is Caring Blog
• Focussing on quality family time

Here’s a quick breakdown of the steps I followed using the SMART method (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, time based). Below is the Cliff Notes version of my planning work for the Sharing is Caring Blog. This is high level and doesn’t represent the full amount of work that went into my planning for 2021!

1. Review previous year wins, and decide what you will and won’t take into the next year.
   • For example – the Sharing is Caring Blog was a win for me in 2020. I decided to take it into 2021 with some modifications.
   • I won’t be doing a weekly accountability post on the Sharing is Caring Blog because the content is not of value to followers.
2. Brainstorm your new goals.
   • Make sure your goals are truly what you want because achieving them involves work!
   • Keep your goals to a small achievable number.
3. Create a mission statement for each goal. Mission statements should start with a concrete I will statement, be brief (25 – 50 words), be clear and concise.
   • For example – I will consistently publish quality content on the Sharing is Caring blog that followers will benefit from, be entertained by, and engage with, to continue building a supportive community of like minded chronic discomfort warriors.
4. Identify the key activities that need to be completed to achieve each goal.
   • Publish one blog per month (minimum).
   • Revamp newsletter.
   • Improve quality and content of blogs.
   • Grow community by 10%.
5. Identify how you will complete the key activities.
   • Schedule blog writing time.
   • Schedule blog post dates.
   • Make content beneficial to followers by adding value add content in the form of links/resources/etc.
   • Continue to pursue publishing on The Mighty.
   • Continue positive engagement with followers.
   • Continue promoting blog on other social media sites.
6. Identify the resources you need to achieve your goal (time, money, support). Hours per month are per blog post. You can see how multiple posts can add up to a significant amount of time.
   • 5 hours per month to write, edit, format, post blog.
   • 1 hour per month to maintain website.
   • 2 – 5 hours per month to schedule social media posts.
   • 2 – 5 hours per month for up-skilling (learning new tech, learning how to create good newsletters, etc.)
   • $100.00 per year to maintain website.
7. Create metrics to measure your progress toward achieving your goal.
   • Monthly blog posted.
   • Positive follower response to revamped newsletter.
   • Continued follower engagement on blog.
   • Increase in newsletter subscribers by 5 people.
8. Identify who needs to know about each goal.
   • People involved in the actual execution of the goal. Web designers, editors, etc. In the case of the Sharing is Caring blog that’s me!
   • Your support crowd. Family, friends, other chronic discomfort bloggers. That’s you! My goal of achieving a welcoming community of fellow warriors is NOTHING without people to share it with.