Why Goal Setting Should Be Your #1 Priority to Start the New Year

The new year provides a fresh start to up-level your life and get on the right track for all that you want to come to fruition over the course of the next twelve months. Only by having well strategized goals can you move the trajectory of your life forward and if you haven't already done so, now is the time to get clear about your desired outcomes for the coming year and here's why:

1. Goal Setting is More Effective Than Resolutions
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​If you have declared resolutions in the past and found that they have drifted into non-existence after the first month of the year, you may want to consider setting goals instead. The definition of a resolution is "a firm decision to do or not to do something," and that is a good start, but it is hardly a path to insuring that your decision will actually become part of your life. Goal setting involves not only the act of declaring what it is you want, but a clear roadmap of action steps for achievement. This includes specificity about the goal, a way to measure your progress and well defined timeframes. 

2. Enthusiasm is Highest As The New Year Begins

​Ringing in the new year brings with it feelings of excitement and enthusiasm about all the possibilities available during the twelve months ahead. This high vibrational mental state is perfect for setting intentions for the outcomes most desired. According to neuroscientist and author Joe Dispenza, when we match our intention with an elevated emotion we attract those results to us.  "Embracing the elevated emotions of your future creation before the experience happens, so your heart will produce a strong magnetic field, will draw your future to you."

3. Forward Thinking Creates Your Future

​Everyone struggles with repeating the same patterns and then feeling surprised when the same results happen. Much of this is due to what comprises our thoughts. Ask yourself, are you focused on the past and how you haven't gotten the results you desire? Staying the course in our thoughts and emotions with those spectacular outcomes we want and deserve will create that future. There's something about the start of the new year that naturally puts the focus on the future, opening up a clear view to what that future looks and feels like. Seize this perfect storm for allowing  your creative juices to flow and lay out your goal(s) and the roadmap for reaching your intended destination.

4. Change Requires a Plan

Let's face it, at the heart of doing anything new in our lives is that dreaded thing called change.  Humans were not built for change. Like the expression goes, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. But, what if it is broke? In other words, you are not manifesting the results you want in your life. We all know that exhilarating feeling of wanting to do something different in our lives because of the happy ending we believe will result. Then, what happens? Why do so many find themselves in the exact same place over and over? This is because change is not easy. To achieve something new, we must first accept that change is required - whether it be a change in our mindset, inner beliefs or our actions. Stepping out of the old familiar and into the new is challenging. Therefore, when you set clear goals with a methodical plan of actionable steps, you are more likely to go slowly and with intention than to race out of the starting gate, only to run out of steam and relapse into old patterns. 

Setting your goals now is the best insurance for looking back this time next year with a sense of satisfaction at your accomplishments!

Love & Light,
-Elisa