Tools for Getting Clearer on Your Goals

I spent some time with my vision board this past weekend, with the intention of getting clearer on my goals for 2015.

I last wrote about my vision board a couple of years ago.  Here is a little of what I shared about a vision board then:

A vision board is a collection of visual images pasted or pinned to a board that represents things that you want to bring into your life.  

A vision board uses the law of attraction to help you reach your goals.  Wikipedia defines the law of attraction as “the name given to the belief that “like attracts like” and that by focusing on positive or negative thoughts, one can bring about positive or negative results.”  A vision board allows you to attract the positive (what you want) into your life by giving you a continuous reminder of that positive.  What you imagine, you become.  What you focus on becomes your reality.

Though my process started with my vision board it expanded to include other tools, an appraisal form and mind mapping, and in the end resulted in some solid goals and action steps.  As I imagine a number of you might be considering your 2015 goals in the next month, I thought you might appreciate seeing an example of a goal assessment / setting process from beginning to end.

Step 1:  I continue to experiment with essentialism, so instead of just reviewing and updating my board as I have in prior years, I started the process by completely clearing it.  In years past, I might not have been as willing to clear the board and in essence start over, but reading Essentialism helped to shift my perspective around letting go.  That book suggests,  instead of asking, “What do I have to give up?”, ask “What do I want to go big on?”  This perspective shift is a game changer for me.  It’s an amazing and freeing process to purposefully let go of lesser goals and to “go big” in the most important area!

Step 2: After clearing my board, I took some time to complete a life assessment, looking at various areas of my life such as self-care, relationships, financial well-being, etc.  The second tool I used, the S.O.S. Life & ADHD Appraisal Form (contact me for a copy of this) helped me get clarity around where I wanted to focus my efforts.  This process helped me decide that it’s time to “go big” on relationships!

Step 3: My next step was to give some thought to what it meant to “go big” on relationships.  I used another of my favorite tools, mind mapping, to capture my thoughts.  Those thoughts gave rise to what I ended up with, pictured at the right.  I’m still in the process of collecting some family photos and some other visual reminders, but I feel I have a good start on where I’m heading.

Do you know where you’re heading?  If so, I’d love to hear what tools you use to help you check-in on or clarify your goals?  If you’re not quite sure where you’re heading, but would like to get a better idea contact me.  I’d love to support you in creating a plan and achieving your goals!