2022 is here. Cue the resolutions and goal setting…
Goal setting can be both exciting and daunting. In the past, I’ve kicked off the New Year feeling overwhelmed by all of the improvements I need to make and all of the things I should be accomplishing in the upcoming twelve months.
This hasn’t always been the best approach. Setting too many unattainable goals is discouraging. A few years ago, though, I learned the power of setting reasonable, flexible goals. It was life-changing for me, and in 2022, this new approach will be more useful than ever.
What we can accomplish over time
I once had a boss who liked to say we often overestimate what we can do in a day, but we underestimate what we can do in a year. It’s true. Too frequently I get discouraged when I don’t accomplish amazing things in a short period of time. On the other hand, I don’t always settle in and give myself the necessary time to complete lofty goals.
A perfect example: I can’t write a novel in a day (or a week or a month). But I could complete something pretty good in a year. Give myself two years? I might even have something I’d feel good about publishing.
Timelines are important.
Set significant, life-altering goals that will stretch you—and then give yourself the appropriate amount of time and grace to accomplish such incredible feats.
Keeping promises to ourselves
As I wrote about in my rejection letter blog, I’m a big fan of setting goals that are doable—and then doing them. It’s an idea I picked up from Rachel Hollis’s Girl, Wash Your Face. When we tell ourselves we’ll do something then we don’t, we train our brains to not believe ourselves. This made me totally shift how I see goals and gave me permission to set smaller, more manageable goals. Workout today for 30 minutes? Yeah, I can do that. Work out 30 minutes every day this week? Hmm, I don’t think I can commit to that, so I’m not going to. Let’s start with today and go from there.
When I set more realistic goals for myself and accomplish them, I feel proud and motivated and ready to set more. One day of working out becomes two, then three, and eventually a habit. On the flip side, when I’ve tried to set goals that sound nice on paper but aren’t reasonable for my schedule/life/situation, I don’t keep the promise to myself, then I feel discouraged and frustrated and unmotivated. When I feel like I’m failing, it’s hard to get out of that rut, because my mind is saying, “What’s the point? You won’t be able to do it anyway.”
So being reasonable and realistic is key.
Being flexible and changing as needed
Setting a bunch of goals at the beginning of the year isn’t always the best approach for me. A year is a long time and so many new things come up in our lives. Goals that don’t evolve aren’t sustainable. That’s why I think it’s important to constantly reevaluate goals, being flexible and willing to make shifts. Maybe that means taking on more—write 1,000 words a day? Easy! Let’s make it 1,500. But it also might mean taking a step back—1,000 words a day isn’t doable right now? Let’s knock it back to 100 words a day. Or 1,000 words a week. That’s okay, too.
Last June, after Nathan got back from an unexpectedly long deployment, he and I had talked about my goals for my writing career. We came up with a very strong plan with tactical goals and action items for me to accomplish to grow my skills. I came up with a content calendar for my website. I had tons of ideas for social media. I wrote up a schedule of online writing courses I would take and penciled in times when I would draft new chapters. I determined to have a v1 of my next story done by October. It all felt super doable and super exciting.
Then, I got a positive pregnancy test and the accompanying morning sickness knocked me down harder than I anticipated.
I could barely finish writing projects and editing assignments for my day job. After a full workday, I didn’t have the brainpower or energy to write blog posts or story chapters. Instead of taking writing classes, I took naps. Rather than revising chapters, I rewatched Great British Baking Show.
Yeah, I felt like a failure. My website was supposed to launch in August. I finally pushed it live the last day of September. New blogs were supposed to delight my readers monthly. I’m starting and finishing this one on December 31, while in bed with covid.
Life happens.
An exciting but uncertain 2022
2022 is going to be a big year for the Fewel family. Already we have slated two major life events. The first and most exciting: Baby Boy Fewel will be joining us in March. Second, Nathan will be leaving the Navy this summer. As first-time parents, we can only imagine how Baby will turn our world upside-down. While we have some really solid ideas and options for our next steps after the military, nothing has been decided yet.
I’m a planner, and pre-Navy Maren would have been freaking out. But if my time as a Navy wife has taught me anything, it’s flexibility. Nathan and I will figure it out, and this year will be great!
It does make planning and goal setting a little more challenging, though.
Honestly, I think I put off this blog until the final hour in part because I was sure how to set reasonable goals that would set me up for success in 2022. I want to stretch myself but also keep life manageable given what 2022 has in store for us.
Here’s what I’ve come up with.
Maren’s goals for 2022:
Welcome Baby to the world.
Figure out where we will live and what we will do once Nathan is out of the Navy. And then do it.
Query (at least) 10 new agents because it’s time to get back out there! Will adjust this goal as needed.
Finish a v1 of my new story (it’s set in a ski resort) to include a beginning, middle, and end—all connected. Does not need to be (read: will not be) perfect. Will edit as time/life permits.
Reevaluate and adjust goals as needed throughout the year.
Different goals for different seasons
During this season of my life, I’m working full-time as a marketing writer, I’m growing a tiny human, I’m supporting my husband in a massive career transition, and I’m trying to be a fiction writer. Things are a little busy.
I’m grateful to have gained a healthier perspective on goals. Yes, there is a lot I can do this year. I can complete amazing things in due time when I set reasonable and realistic goals that I adjust as needed.
2022 is going to be a great year with many opportunities for growth and learning. I’m excited to see what’s in store, and (another goal) share my experiences along this writing journey.
