How to Make Meaningful Goals
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We've done a lot of posts on resolutions and goal-setting over the years, but I was intrigued by a reader thread a while ago: how do you make meaningful goals? Readers had a lot of great suggestions, including
- Identify meaningful goals. Think big! People mentioned buying houses, finding partners, going on big travel adventures, competing in your hobby, having a baby, be happy without X (a partner, the promotion, etc), and more.
- While you're thinking big, try to have a medium term project and a short term project — even if it's for a hobby like knitting — in other words, have goals IN your hobbies.
Readers recommended resources like:
- the book Designing Your Life (often recommended here!)
- “Cultivate What Matters” power sheets
- check out Gretchen Ruben's many books (I'm reading The Four Tendencies at the moment!)
- a new app called “Level Up Life” that works a bit like goal centric journaling (and I've shared my review of the similar app Daylio for easy journaling — as well as my favorite tips for digital journaling — and we've discussed everyone's favorite paper planners recently-ish also)
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Here are some of our posts in the past that may help you with those meaningful goals…
(Oh, and here's a link to a more general discussion that will probably help with all of the below resolutions: how to get up early.)
Save More
- A Money Roadmap: What To Do, How to Prioritize It
- How to Automate Your Savings
- What's the Best Change You've Made to Save More Money?
- How to Set (and Stick To) a Budget
Pay Down Debt
Learn About Finances
- The Best Financial Books for Beginners
- Personal Finance Advice for New Grads
- How to Start Investing
- Check Out Our Tiny Money Challenge Series
- Tax Savvy Investments
- How to Find a Financial Planner
Eat (or Drink) Better
- Why I Love Dry January — and Tips to Moderate Your Drinking
- How to Eat Less Meat
- How Kat's Using Atomic Habits for Health Goals
- What to Eat for Energy
- Healthy Snacks for the Office
Move More
- How to Fit Exercise Into a Busy Day
- The Best Streaming Workouts To Do at Home (also check out my reviews of the apps Sweat and FitBod)
- How to Hire a Personal Trainer
Find a Hobby
- The 6 Kinds of Fulfilling Hobbies
- The Best Hiking Gear for Women
- The Best Sewing Patterns for Workwear Outfits
- How to Write a Novel
- Do Arts & Crafts for Stress Relief (like Subversive Cross Stitch!)
Appreciate More, Stress Less
- The Best Things Readers Have Done to Be Happier
- The Easiest 60-Second Meditation App
- The Benefits of Meditation
- How to Turn Off Work Mode
- Easy Ways to Laugh More
- Dealing with Anxiety
- Ways to Relax
Organize Your Life
- Where to Recycle, Donate, and Sell Your Work Clothes
- Three Different Ways to Clean Your Closets
- How I Organized My Personal Email with Sanebox
- How to Organize Your Office
- Decluttering, Selling, Donating, Kondoing, and More
- How to Find a Great Cleaning Service
- How to Organize Your Closets
Grow Your Career
- How to Get Out of a Work-From-Home Slump
- 7 Tips to Work With a Recruiter
- How to Manage Your To-Do List at Work
- Books and Resources to Become a Better Manager
- Ignore Bad Career Advice
- How to Become a Leader
- How to Get a New Career
Look More Polished
- What Not to Wear to Work (really recent)
- What Not to Wear To Avoid Looking Frumpy
- How to Build Your Working Wardrobe
- How to Step Up Your Work Outfits
- Easy, Office-Appropriate Up-Dos
Readers, do you have any favorite conversations or posts that have been helpful for self-improvement? Any big topics we've missed, or things you'd like to see updated?
Stock photo via Stencil.
I’m doing Gretchen Rubin’s 22 in 2022 again. I set a mix of one-time goals (walk around Lake Union in one day here in Seattle, travel somewhere new), once a month goals (go to 12 new parks or museums, do 12 60+ minute Peloton classes, ski 6 times), and daily or weekly goals (track mood every day on Daylio, work out 100 minutes a week, read 150 books). I bought a habit tracker that I hung next to my calendar in my kitchen that’s a good visual way of keeping me on track without being overwhelming.
I set goals last year but my mental health was in a really bad place from about February to….August? so my goals just went out the window except for a few goals that took zero motivation. Eh. It was a bad year.
Love the mix of one time goals and others! Here’s to hoping for a good 2022 year!
Hi Sloan – I also live in Seattle and would love to do some of the activities that you listed (walk around Lake Union in one day, check out the new Nordic Museum in Ballard, go skiing, etc.) If you have any interest in meeting up with a fellow corporette reader for a walk around Lake Union or to check out a new park/museum, let me know!
Is “Level up Life” the name of the app you’re using? Or is it something else? I can’t find it in the app store on apple…
I did the live class for “Best Year Yet” by Michael Hyatt last year and again for 2022. It was a live course (5hrs?) Then I did a “Planning Day” with Lisa Woodruff (Organize 365). Hyatt focuses on work and Woodruff focuses on your house and kids. The combination was really helpful. Both have books, but I need the dedicated time and to have someone hold my hand and go through the process of what I want to accomplish (new habits, or projects). Woodruff makes you figure out how you spend your 168 hours to see what you need to change or why you haven’t succeeded in the past. Then you plan the next three months. Last year, I set 10 goals. I achieved 8 with partial credit for the other two goals. All in I probably spent 12 hours in goal planning and about $500 out of pocket. I think of it as affordable therapy. You can get their books at the library. The courses (and the chat and FB communities) help to make it stick. Good luck ladies! And watch out 2022…