# 18: The Building Thriving Lifestyles New Year Reflection Guide & Goal Setting Worksheet.
WELCOME, and thank you for taking the time to dive into some reflections with me.
How has your past year been?
Today marks the first day of a completely new year and what better time to pause, take a moment & reflect other than today.
New Year is such a wonderful time to celebrate. It’s so full of possibilities, hopes, plans & expectations – the best time to open a new chapter & head off to a fresh start. Even so, New Year is such a wonderful time to reflect as well, to look back on the year that’s passed & recognize what could have worked well or what could have been done differently.
Self-reflection
Firstly, let’s talk about self-reflection. What is it & why is it important?
Think of it this way, self-reflection is like looking at the mirror & describing what you see. It’s basically assessing yourself, your strengths, your weaknesses, what worked for you and what didn’t work for you. It’s the ultimate key to self-awareness that later leads to a healthy self-esteem. It’s a skill applied on every aspect – physical, mental, emotional & spiritual.
I could think of many ways self-reflection positively impacts an individual, but there is one that just stands out; self-reflection promotes one’s growth & accountability. Being more self-aware makes one realize his or her own faults and improve from there. It gives one the power to look from within and change whatever needs to be changed, whether it may be a negative self-talk or a toxic behavior.
And, this New Year is just the best time to do it. Look back on the year that’s passed. Pause, take a moment to think & ask yourself. How has your relationship been? How has your work been? How has your health been? And what did you do to improve all those areas in your life?
To guide you, here are some questions that you could ask to yourself & ponder on:
What goals were you able to achieve last year?
What goals are you still working on?
Who was the most important person in your life last year & how did he/she help you?
What were the positive experiences you are most thankful for last year?
What would you change, given a chance, about last year?
What were your biggest challenges/hurdles last year?
What are some things you think you need to leave behind?
What were your fears last year?
What could have been done differently last year that could have led to better results?
Goal Setting
Now, let’s get to the more exciting part – goal setting!
After you’ve done your self-reflection, you’ll now be able to more clearly & more effectively write down your goals & achieve them.
PS. You can’t effectively set goals without first reflecting on yourself and figuring out what is important to you.
It’s time now to think of the things you want to achieve, the activities you want to do more of or even the person you want to be.
Most often people set themselves SMART goals, that are purely outcome based. And then they stop there. You will reconize these type of goals as for example I want to lose 5 kg, by February 28th. Problem with this method is that it does not show you the way to achieve your goals as it focuses partially on things that are outside your control, you are not in charge of how your metabolism reacts to your dieting, and if you always focus on external factors it's easy to get side tracked and to lose motivation. Because what happens if you only lose 4 kg? Did you fail?
To get around this issue when I work with my clients in addition to the SMART Outcome goals, to further divide them into Performance goals and Process goals. AKA what do I want to be able to do, and what do I need to do repeatedly to achieve the outcome i desire in the SMART goal.
I have found it is very helpful because it shifts the focus away from the things that are not within your control and start to focus just on the things you can control. Most people experience a huge sense of relief and find it easier to be successful. Lets look at bit more into details of each of these.
Step 1 Performance Goals:
When you set your self performance goals, I want you to focus on you beating yourself. I want you to set an achievable goal for you that matters to you and aligns with your self reflections you did before.
If one of the things that is important to you is Freedom, and you visualised yourself Free being able to run in the mountains. Let's start with something like, I want to be able to run 5 km on trails and uneven surfaces before next summer.
If one of the things that is important to you is aesthetics and you visualize yourself on a beach with a 6 pack and big biceps it could be something like, I want to be able to do 10 chin-ups with my own bodyweight or I want to lower my body fat % so to about 15% where you begin to see those abs popping out before my next holiday.
Please make sure these goals ARE NOT aimed at other people. For example I want to run faster than my husband, take the control out of your hands and now - if your husband starts to train and run faster you will get demotivated. We are taking control and placing it in your hands. So make sure your goal aligns with things YOU can control.
Step 2 Process Goals:
Take Your Goal and break it down into small achievable actions something you can do DAILY and WEEKLY, check off a list that will bring you closer to your goals.
If one of your values was Freedom, and you visualized yourself Free being able to run in the mountains. Let's start with something like, I want to be able to run 5 km on trails and uneven surfaces before next summer.
Join the from the couch to 5 km running program from fitwitheik.com
Run 3-4 x pr week according to running program
Walk/jog on trails or uneven surfaces minimum 1x pr week
Drink more water to replace fluids I sweat when I run
If one of your values was aesthetics and you visualize yourself on a beach with a 6 pack and big biceps it could be something like, I want to be able to do 10 chin-ups with my own bodyweight or I want to lower my body fat % so to about 15% where you begin to see those abs popping out before my next holiday.
Sign Up For A Gym
Start lifting some weights, 2 split programs is a great place to start.
Make sure you do some progression towards pullups every week
Adjust your portion sizes so you are losing weight, and eat more protein to make sure you are feeling your muscles for growth
Best of luck planning your goals. Hope this slightly different method helps you take back the control into your hands. And most importantly helps you start to see the road to achieving your goals. If you want my help to set goals, I am opening up a limited amount of spots for clients starting in the new year. You can DM me on IG or send me an email to get started.
Ending this blog with a quote to encourage you.
“People with goals succeed because they know where they’re going.”
Wishing you the Best Year,
Coach Eik
