5 essential tips when setting a personal goal for the year

I've started a habit of setting personal goals for myself since 2017. They usually aren't universe-defining things, just small things that may mean nothing to someone else, but the world to me. I started by setting myself a goal of reading 10 books back in 2017. Did not achieve that until last year.

We all know the old adage about new year resolutions, in that we always start strong but lose our way at some point in the year. So much so that a lot of us have abandoned the idea of setting any for ourselves over time. Why bother to invest thinking-time in a doomed venture, right? But I've learned that there are fundamental reasons why we almost-habitually abandon resolutions.

Here are some tips I've learned on how to set personal goals that you would want to see through to the end.

Pick something that resonates with you emotionally

Stop setting goals that mean something to someone else in your life but absolutely nothing to you. I have found that goals/resolutions like that are often the quickest to get dropped. Instead, pick a reachable but challenging goal that actually resonates with you personally. Never mind if it seems small or insignificant. This may seem obvious but we so often forget - you will soon find that achieving a simple goal is a lot better than setting magnificently ambitious goals that you never achieve. Achieving a small goal will give you the energy and impetus to go on to achieve more challenging ones. It's like a muscle. Build it gradually over time.

Be specific

Again, something basic that we so often forget to do - be specific about the goal you want to achieve. Sure, you want to lose weight by eating more healthily this year. How much weight and how many calories are you planning to cut out of your diet? You want to have a more active lifestyle? How many exercise sessions do you plan to do a week and what are you planning to do in those sessions? It's hard to achieve something when you do not know what you are trying to achieve. Put a number to it and you will find it easier to stay on track when there is actually something tangible and measurable to focus on.

Build a routine around it

Habits are built over time, especially when they involve us doing things we don't normally do, like reading, or exercising or sleeping early. It's a lot easier to do it when you build an actual routine around the activity. The reason why I managed to achieve my goal last year of reading 10 books was because I purposed at the start of the year that I was going to take quick lunches at work so that I could get at least 20-minutes of reading time every workday. That's 1-hour and 40 minutes of reading time per-week that I did not have the year before. Routines naturally require some sacrifice. If you are prepared to pay it, it will set you on your way to achieving your goal.

Celebrate progress

A year is a long time. If you are waiting until the end of the year to pop some champagne for achieving something, that could get tedious and you could eventually develop fatigue from trying to achieve something that seems so far away. People like me need to see progress as I go along so that I am motivated to continue. Celebrate your progress every quarter. Treat yourself to a nice meal (not too 'nice' if you are trying to lose weight) or a gift when you achieve a solid quarter of doing what you set out to do. Building positive energy around your goals may just be a surefire way to ensure you reach the finishing line.

Use an app

Use an app to track your progress. There are tons of habit tracker apps available in your online app stores. I use HabitBull. What it does is that it provides me with an up-to-date tracker on how I am doing in terms of achieving my goal. If the numbers are going down, it is often a reminder to me to start ramping things up. It's hard to keep focused when you don't have an actual number on how you are doing. On the flip side, good numbers can keep you motivated to keep going and build further positive energy around the activity.

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