Lifestyle Goals: Monthly Review

I'm changing the way I keep track of my goals. I haven't been doing it in this format for that long and in that time have just been focusing on a few aspects of life I wanted to improve. I've seen some improvement and can see the benefits of actively focusing on my all the aspects of my life to achieve the lifestyle I desire. So, I'm adopting Bless' approach and am aiming for a balanced life; this is Bless' explanation:

 .... my monthly balanced life goals are similar to the spokes of a wheel, with the length of each spoke representing my satisfaction in that area of my life, from 1 to 10, with 1 being most dissatisfied and 10 being most satisfied.  Ideally, all the spokes are of equal length and the wheel will roll along smoothly.  If the spokes are of unequal lengths, then, the resulting wheel will be lop-sided and wobbly.  My current ratings for each segment are shown within the parentheses.  

So, here are my lifestyle goals, stating my long term goals and the bullet-pointed task list that I'll tackle in May to help achieve this goal.

Home (8)

Goal: To maintain a clean and tidy home
  • dispose of the extra furniture
  • place 10 adverts for items I want to sell
  • daily tasks = washing up and tidying living room before going up to bed

Garden (6)

Goal: To keep the garden tidy and presentable
  • clear and tidy all the pots on the patio
  • weed one area, plant bulbs and/or shrubs, and lay membrane/gravel to help with future weed control
  • water garden regularly during sunny spells

Finance (9)

Goal: To remain completely debt free 
  • reassess my budget (now that I have additional income from the teaching)
  • reduce my food bill
  • increase monthly savings 

Community, friends and family (7)

Goal: To take an active role in my local community, and actively seek to strengthen bonds with family and friends
  • continue voluntary work with the youth band
  • arrange to meet up with Julie and Lauren during the month
  • arrange to spend time with Little Misses C and H

Emotional Well Being (7)

Goal: To improve my emotional well being and avoid bouts of depression
  • actively correct any negative thoughts
  • keep a gratitude diary listing three reasons to be grateful every day

Health and Fitness (6)

Goal: To increase my levels of fitness and become more active, leading to an improvement in my general health
  • keep all medical appointments in May
  • aim for 7,000 daily steps by the end of the month
  • 8 hours sleep every night, getting up before 7:30 am every day

Healthy Eating (7)

Goal: To eat sensibly and healthily, leading to weight loss and increased energy levels
  • meal planning 
  • drinking 8 glasses of water a day
  • restrict the number of takeaways and meals out

Live Life to the Full (7)

Goal: To live life now, in the moment, and stop putting things off. Decide what I want to achieve and do it!
  • continue to develop my 5 year plan
  • arrange holiday and day trips for the remainder of 2019
  • daily piano practice

I still need to think more carefully about some of my goals but these are a good start. If I didn't post them now I'd be guilty of putting it off and that's something I'm trying to avoid. I'm also aware as I write them that the same things have been niggling me for years so it is definitely the time to reassess my life - the house is nearly finished, I'm retired, so have no excuses. It's a case of do it now, get it sorted, or ... accept things as they are and focus on something else!

To finish, here's my daily photo. I don't know whether this is a bud on my rose or my neighbour's as our plants have grown both ways through the fence ... it's pretty though!


Comments

  1. A good set of goals, if it works for you to organise stuff that way.

    I've gone the opposite way - I have stopped writing lists. Instead of motivating me I found "The List" was just a depressing reminder of all the things I hadn't done. After a lifetime of list-writing I thought it might be a bit of a train wreck, but I'm much happier without.

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    1. I’m very much a ‘lists’ person! I have tried organising myself without but I didn’t get anything done. I’m childish enough to like ticking off completed tasks 😂

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  2. I love goals, it keeps order in my life, I agree with you year after year I have the same niggles. Since retiring from work, I changed my alarm to wake me at 8am Monday to Friday it's a reminder to starting a structured day. Some days I'm up before then and others I stay in bed after 8am, it also marks the difference between the weekend and week days.

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    1. I’m doing something similar. I know that my ‘good’ days are those where I’ve got all the ‘must do’ tasks completed in the morning so that’s what I’m aiming for.

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  3. They are all great, totally understandable aims to have, and it looks as if you are on the right trajectory with all of them. Just keep on keeping on! The wheel analogy is quite helpful. I've been feeling a bit adrift of late but maybe it's a natural ebb and flow of things...

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    1. I know what you mean about feeling a bit adrift which is one of the reasons behind changing to this approach. I know I won’t stay on track if I don't stay focused and I feel I’ve been letting things drift for too long.

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  4. Eileen you have some wonderful goals & I like you, I enjoy making lists. I like how you have put things into categories & then listed items within that will lead to the goal. Please know I'm cheering you on from this side of the pond. Bless's wheel is a good visual. Mr Man & I are currently looking at ideas for achieving some long term goals. I joked that we should buy some of those plastic ducks & write the goal on each one & then line them up in the kitchen window - having our ducks in a row could be very motivating!

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    1. I love my lists... can’t manage without them! Good luck with your long term goals - I like your suggestion of the row of ducks!

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  5. I love it! You have come up with a wonderful list of goals and I really like your categories, too! In fact, it's giving me ideas for modifying my own categories! I hope the month of May is a good one for working on goals! :)

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    1. Thanks Bless. I think it needs to be fine tuned but it is a plan that will evolve so I'm not fretting about it.

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  6. You have reminded me that I need to look at mine and revise them. I like the way you have divided them into categories and I understand the need for lists and planning. I'm the same.
    xx

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    1. I can't function properly with my lists ... I think it's the 'teacher' in me!

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    2. That should say ‘without’ my lists!

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  7. I do hope these goals help you. The rose bud is a great simile to where your life is going: bursting out into a flourish

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    1. Thanks Maggie. I hadn’t thought of the significance of choosing the rose bud but you’re right, I am starting a new phase in my life.

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