New Year New Goals

Happy New Year everyone! I know I'm a bit late to the party, but I have spent the last four days trying to make some big decisions, and I wanted to have all my ducks in a row before I came here to talk about it. The start of a new year is always a good time to set new goals for the  year and decide where you want to go for the coming months. I've never been really good at resolutions, I either set unreasonable goals, or I don't plan properly, and things fall apart really fast. So as I was lying in bed the other night, wondering if my 2 hour nap earlier in the day was the reason I couldn't sleep, I decided to spend my time wisely and write down what I wanted to happen this year.

I knew that in order to be successful, I would need to be as specific as possible in what I want to achieve, I would also need to be realistic. I can't be a millionaire by the end of the year, but I may be better equipped to handle running a household on a limited budget. I won't be able to fit into a bikini, but maybe I can have a healthier lifestyle. It is these distinctions that I hope will lead to success. For more tips on setting goals check out this awesome post by the Empress of Dirt

My goals for 2016
Below are the big goals I decided on initially

• Become more organised
• Quit smoking
• Lose weight
• Manage my money better
• Grow my blog

Now those goals are too broad on their own, so I needed to refine them further and make them more achievable. Below is the more specific list of goals.

• Learn to manage my house like a pro, and become better at time management
• Be a non-smoker by the middle of the year
• Learn to love exercise and healthy living
• Find a budgeting system that works for me, and be closer to being debt free by the end of the year
• Increase my page views to 500 per week, and start writing more regularly

Now all of these things appear to be achievable. They are clearly outlined, and there are definite destinations to reach. Now all I needed to do is break all of these goals down into even smaller chunks, to make them less daunting and easier to implement. Below are just some of the smaller goals involved in the bigger goals.

Manage the house like a pro & time management

• Set up a manageable cleaning schedule and stick to it
• Implement a one in, one out system to reduce clutter
• Aim to send at least one bag per week to the charity stores
• Create a personal planner system and use it
• Write to do lists, shopping lists, cleaning lists, list lists, anything to make objectives clear.

Become a non-smoker

• Try patches
• Try gum again if I have to (I really hate the gum)
• Discuss my desire to quit with my doctor, get help
• Find a quit app that helps
• Learn different ways to distract myself when the urges hit
• Talk to other people who have quit, and see what worked for them.
• If I slip up, keep trying, don't give up giving up until I get there

Love exercise and healthy living

• Cut down on the junk food (notice I didn't say stop entirely, even I realise that's an impossible task)
• Start exercising regularly
• Get outside and run around with Miss K
• Start snacking on healthy options
• Use the fitness app on my phone

Find a budgeting system and be closer to being debt free by the end of the year

• Research budgeting systems, and find or make one that works 
• Find different ways to bring extra income into the house
• Quitting smoking will save $6,700 per year (woo hoo)
• Organise payment plans for all outstanding debts

Increase my page views and write regularly

• Create a bank of writing ideas for when inspiration is lacking
• Start writing posts in advance when I am feeling creative to help fill in the blanks if I'm having a slow week
• Set aside time for writing every day/every other day

So that's how all of my goals have been broken down so far. I am already implementing some of my ideas, and I hope to share my progress here with you guys over the coming weeks. Of course a lot of the time I'm not going to be reinventing the wheels, so I'll be including links to resources if ever I come up with something that works. If you check out my Pinterest boards, I've already started pinning a heap of stuff which I plan to use regularly. 

Have any of you set any goals to achieve this year? Do you have any tips to share on how to make this journey happen? Please leave a comment below and let me know.