“New year, new you” is a phrase we often hear around this time of year, and it’s always felt peculiar to me, because it suggests that when we wake up on January 1st, we’re a brand new person. Of course, the idea of a fresh start, a new dawn, and a clean slate upon which to write is super appealing… but the reality is that unless we have spent the previous year strategically and systematically working towards our goals, January 1st is going to be little different to December 31st.
Oftentimes, people set new year’s resolutions for the year ahead, but did you know that, according to the U.S. News and World Report, around 80% of people will have failed to keep up their resolutions by mid-February?
The problem, I believe, is that resolutions by nature are vague and ambiguous. Goals, on the other hand, are specific and require planning—making them much more likely to happen.
Take the popular example of getting fitter. If someone sets out to become ‘more fit’ in the new year, how will they know when they have achieved their goal? When they have lost 5lbs, or 20lbs? When they are walking 10,000+ steps each day? When they are consistently committing to exercise 4x a week, and have done so for 4 months?
Time and time again, I hear from women who tell me that they want to achieve big things, yet they have no idea WHAT THOSE ARE specifically, never mind how to get there. Or maybe they have somewhat of an idea, but the details are a bit foggy.
One of my favorite authors T. Harv Eker states in The Secrets of the Millionaire Mind that in order to get what you want, you have to know what you want, and I 100% agree…
…which is why in this blog post I’m going to share my exact process for vision mapping. If you use these questions to set your goals for 2022 and beyond, and refer back to them each month to make sure you’re staying on track, you’ll be sure to achieve the goals you set out to!
But first…
You may be wondering, what is vision mapping? It’s the act of writing down a clear and specific vision, along with a detailed roadmap of the direction you must go in and the route you must take that will allow you to achieve it.
Along the way, you will set and achieve goals, but the VISION is the big picture piece. It’s about painting an image of what you want your reality to look like, so you ensure you’re setting and achieving goals that will drive you in the direction of your dreams.
In my mind, there are 3 components to the goal-setting part of this process:
- Short-term goals
- Long-term goals
- Big picture goals
But before we jump in, here are some important things to note:
Set Yourself Up For Success
Remember there’s no right or wrong to setting goals per se (besides dreaming BIG of course) but I do want you to understand that goals should be SMART—specific, measurable, ATTAINABLE, relevant, and time-based.
Meaning… if your business is brand new, don’t set yourself a goal of making a million dollars in the next month. Instead, opt for a target that stretches you but makes logistical sense, like $5k, then $10k, then $20k, and so on…
We’re all capable of quantum leaps, sure, and we DO want to speak things into existence. But if you can combine your manifestation work with practical planning that’s where you’ll see the REAL results.
(And besides, breaking your big vision down into smaller, more attainable goals will give you the quick wins that raise your vibration and inspire/motivate you to KEEP going. Likewise, continuously NOT reaching your goals will start to feel really icky really quickly, and if you’re forever disheartened and disappointed, you might even be tempted to stop and throw in the towel or start repelling the things you desire but aren’t an energetic match for—more on being magnetic to what you want, here.)
Get Uncomfortable
But yes, to reiterate, you DO want to set yourself a challenge. We often underestimate what we can achieve. Goal setting should be about getting out of your comfort zone and moving into everything you desire for your life and work. It’s about daring to dream. About taking risks. About coming up with creative ways to make the ‘unbelievable achievable’, too. You’ve got to strike a delicate balance.
Think about weight loss, for example… we all know those first days back at the gym are challenging. Your body doesn’t want to be there, and yet it knows that on the other side is everything that it needs to feel better. It’s the same with your personal development and creating more success; your mind and body will literally fight you. In those moments, I want you to remember why you started. Why you’re doing this. What the end goal is. Keep your desires front and center!
Commit to Yourself
Goal setting doesn’t just take motivation, it requires commitment. Often, when we talk about accountability, we’re referring to having other people hold us accountable. Honestly, I think as a society, we don’t place enough importance on being a self-starter. Because in reality, in order to achieve big results, you have to have that kind of drive and determination in you.
One of the best ways to stay motivated is to make a commitment to yourself that you take things seriously, and the way to do that is to continuously focus on your desires and why you’re doing what it is you’re doing. Hold the vision. Trust the process—even when it’s hard. Stick to what you said you were going to do so you can bring about the success you crave. Don’t let yourself come up with excuses disguised as real reasons not to do the work and let yourself off the hook, because where will that get you? Not to where you’ve envisioned, that’s for sure. What are you intending to create? Conjure up an image of that every single day. I like to build vision work into my morning routine so I never skip out on it!
Ok—now that we know how to prepare, let’s dive into mapping out our vision:
As Stephen Covey says: “Begin with the end in mind”… for that reason, we’ll be working backward, starting with big picture goals, moving through to long-term goals, and ending with short-term goals…
Big Picture Goals
Think about your life, career, business, health, and relationship, etc. (you can add some other areas of focus if you wish!). Then uncover your ultimate, big picture goals and write them down.
These goals should be at least one year out. (Maybe as many as 10 or 40 years away!)
E.g. My Goals For My Life Are:
- Become a millionaire
- Publish a bestselling book
- Move to Italy
Long-Term Goals
Next, think about the exact same areas again, but this time, focus on the goals you want to achieve within the next year.
These should be the things you want to achieve this coming year, and they should set you up for success to accomplish your big picture goals (even if they are only Step 1!).
E.g.
- Hit 6 figures
- Finish your manuscript/book proposal
- Take a trip to Europe
Short-Term Goals
Finally, looking at the same areas as above, consider what you can achieve this next month.
And yep, you guessed it—doing these things in the next month should set you up for success to achieve both your long-term goals and your big picture goals!
E.g.
- Set up a sales funnel for your course
- Finish your sample chapters
- Plan a launch that will make you the money you need
Then, to ensure you’re right on track, at the end of each month, evaluate your goals:
Looking at your short-term goals for that particular month, ask yourself:
Did you do what you said you were going to do?
If not, why not?
Could you have done anything differently or was the result out of your control?
It’s important to not berate yourself, but I do want you to hold yourself accountable… so write out your goals for the month again, and tick off the ones you were able to achieve so that you can see a visual representation of your progress.
Next, spend some time journaling on how you did so that you can find the takeaways.
What did you do a great job of?
What will you do better at next month?
What extra help will you seek out?
IMPORTANT NOTE: The short-term goals will be even EASIER to achieve if you break them down into individual tasks you can check off. My COO supports me with this and gets EVERYTHING in Asana so day-on-day I’m prompted to take an action. The achievement of a goal is literally the compound effect of completing all the small tasks that make it up well and on time! If you want to know how I plan (rather than goal set) for the year ahead, read this.
It’s also super important to celebrate your wins—no matter how small, so write down what you’re commemorating this month, and HOW you will be doing so. It’s crucial you really allow yourself to enjoy your positive moments and indulge in your success.
And there we have my vision mapping process for 2022 and beyond!
I really hope you found this as useful as you did inspirational and that you’ll be answering the above questions to help make sure next year is an incredible one. Goal setting really is essential if you have dreams as big as yours, and once you start ticking off your achievements each month, you’ll start to see that everything you desire really is possible!
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