2015- “My breakthrough year!”
My New Year’s Resolutions for 2015 read like a scroll. Some of the highlights included:
- Getting out of the restaurant industry
- Building a thriving business
- Spending a month backpacking Iceland or New Zealand
- Clearing $30k in student loan debt
- Etc. Etc. Etc.
Wow! For the record, I had no idea what building a business entailed, or what sort of business I was attempting to build. Furthermore, I had no clue how I was going to make more money to pay off such as sizable chunk of my student loans. To say my resolutions were lofty and idealistic would have been an understatement. Realizing this, a second attempt was made.
2016- “My breakthrough year!”
In 2016, I shortened the list to 1 resolution:
- Get out of the restaurant industry!
Sounded simple enough. The problem was, getting out of the restaurant industry involved becoming a successful entrepreneur— which as it turns out— is not so simple.
2017- “My breakthrough year!”
Come 2017 I was sure I had it figured out. I had created a business plan, formulated a logo, hired a business coach and created my first digital coaching course. Winning! I assumed the problem with my past resolution was that it wasn’t specific enough. So I gave it another go:
- Get out of the restaurant industry!
- Generate 111k in course profits
Can I tell you how much money I generated in course profits that year? Zero dollars. Not. A. Damn. Cent. Actually after paying out monthly automation fees— I was in hole.
2018- “My breakthrough year breakdown year”
The title sums it up.
Are you beginning to see a trend here?
2019- “My breakthrough year!”
I was absolutely sure 2019 was the year— my year! I mean I had a new course offering, a consulting contract with a local hospital, and plenty of fails under my belt. Why not try it— just one last time:
- Get out of the restaurant industry!
- Generate 111k in course profits
Damnit! I was positive this was my year. Don’t get me wrong— it was, in many ways— I was married, I beat cancer and my business actually turned a substantial profit. Cheeehoo!
However, to date, I haven’t made my way out of the restaurant industry. I have yet to visit Iceland or New Zealand, and my student loan debt has actually increased due to accrued interest. Yay!
2020- “My breakthrough year!”
Today is New Year’s Eve— and not only is it a new year— it’s a new decade. A. Brand. New. Decade. Maybe I’m just being dramatic, but I think a new decade is worthy of much more than some passive, last-minute resolution that will be forgotten by the end of January.
For the past 6 years now my New Year’s resolution has been to get out of the service industry. And I can tell you, I came pretty damn close to scratching out the breakthrough year bullshit and coming up with some (much more reasonable) resolutions.
But what can I say? I’m a glutton for punishment.
Truth is, I’m 100% positive, behind every single (seemingly overnight) success story lies a mountain of failure— a whole damn mountain. Which means, in order to succeed— first, I’m gonna get REALLY good at failing.
That being said, this year I’m not just scribbling down my resolution, closing my eyes and crossing my fingers. This year I’m taking notes from the productivity experts— I’ve been reading Michael Hyatt, listening to Pat Flynn and watching Laura Vanderkam— and I realized, the piece I’ve been missing all along was the actual plan to get there. So I’ve taken their advice and come up with this plan of action.
New Year’s Resolution + Plan of Action
Get out of the restaurant industry by generating $60k in business revenue.
60k / 10 = 6k per month (beginning in March) that’s 60 new program sells per month or 15 per week
Milestones to get me there:
- Master webinars by March 1st
- First action step is to research courses or coaches to help get me there. Begin with Amy Porterfield (Courses that Convert), starting January 1st.
- Host my first webinar on March 2nd
- First action step is to come up with a title and ask 3 trusted friends to attend (accountability).
- Generate Facebook/Pinterest/Instagram ads to promote webinars
- First action step is to write the copy for the ad on March 3rd
Keep in mind, if I host 3 webinars every Mon, Tues and Thurs— at a 1% return, I’ll need to gather 20 in attendance to hit 60k for the year.
Better, right?! More focused. More specific. More actionable. And I’m convinced it’s gonna work! Maybe not exactly as planned, maybe not at all as planned. As long as I show up and take action, at the very least, I’ll be able to cut back on my serving shifts and begin sharing more of my gifts with the world.
What are your resolutions for 2020?
More importantly, have you generated a plan of action to help you actualize them? Just in case you haven’t— and you could use some assistance— I’ve taken key points from these extremely successful productivity gurus and compiled their information into a (relatively simple) 5-Step Formula. Hope this helps!
The 5-Step Formula to Master Your New Year’s Resolutions
1. Brainstorm Goals
I have an idea— well actually it’s Laura Vanderkam’s idea— but I’m gonna go ahead and borrow it. Here’s what I want you to do.
- Pull out a pen and piece of paper, or a special “Make a Little Magic Everyday” journal (tell me I’m not the only one that geeks out on goals).
- Put yourself in the mindset that 2020 has already passed. Imagine it’s January 1st, 2021 and you’re sitting down to give yourself a performance review of 2020. As you think about your year in review, allow yourself to feel excited, because 2020 has been an absolutely amazing year for you!
- Write your review by listing 3-5 things that made your year SO brilliant.
Those 3-5 things are essentially your goals for 2020.
2. Think SMARTER
Sometimes we don’t meet our goals because we are unclear as to what they are and what they mean to us. Michael Hyatt encourages us to start with a well-formulated goal— ideally one that passes the SMARTER system.
The best goals are:
- Specific enough to focus and direct your energies.
- Measurable so you can keep track of your progress.
- Actionable with clear initiating verb that prompts specific activity.
- Risky enough to leverage our natural tendency to rise to challenges.
- Time-keyed so you’re prompted exactly when to act.
- Exciting enough to inspire and harness the power of your intrinsic motivation.
- Relevant within the overall context of your life.
Walk each of your 3-5 goals through the SMARTER system.
The Smarter System
- Make sure your goal is specific enough to focus and direct your energies. For example, instead of stating, “I want to lose weight in 2020” try, “I will lose 30 pounds by December of 2020.”
- Be sure to select a goal that is measurable. Often times, getting specific with your goal irons out its measurability. As in the example above, there’s no way to measure, “I want to lose weight in 2020.” It’s more of a wish really. However, losing 30 pounds in 12 months can be broken down and measured. 30 pounds in 12 months breaks down to roughly 3 pounds a month. Now the goal is looking much more manageable— which leads us to our next step.
- Is your goal actionable? We’ll cover this further in step 4 of the 5-Step Fomula, but basically, are you able to set smaller goals or milestones in order to reach the finish line?
- Be sure to select a goal that is risky. Not like risking your life, or the lives of your children kind of risky. More like, get out of your comfort zone and don’t be afraid to fail. Remember, comfort equals minimalistic achievement— we’re going for glory here!
- Make sure your goal is time-keyed. This basically breaks down to selecting a start date.
- Is your goal exciting, or better yet— inspiring? If you aren’t excited by the thought of how much better you’re going to feel (physically and mentally) and after losing 30 pounds than you better select another goal. Because it’s that excitement you may come to rely on when the initial enthusiasm wears off.
- Finally, is your goal relevant? Meaning, is your goal in alignment with your lifestyle, dreams and long-term desires? If not, you’re going to be working against some powerful resistance.
3. Nominate Your Non-Negotiable
After walking each goal through the SMARTER strategy, you should be in better position to prioritize which of the 3-5 goals are most important to you within 2020. Of the 3-5 goals you initially brainstormed, go ahead and circle your top priority for the year. That is your non-negotiable. I would suggest beginning with your non-negotiable— make that your sole focus. That doesn’t mean that you can’t have multiple non-negotiables throughout the year, it just means you’re going to focus and take them one at a time.
4. Set Milestones
Next, come up with 3 or 4 clearly stated actionable goals that will draw you closer to your non-negotiable. These are your milestones. In terms of weight loss perhaps you could join a gym, hire a personal trainer or take on a dietary challenge.
Just as before, it’s important to get specific with these milestones. For example, I will commit to the ketogenic diet on January 14th. I will join Crunch Gym on March 1st, and I will hire a personal trainer on May 5th. Go ahead and mark each milestone on your calendar with a specific date. That’s your start date.
5. Make it Real
From there, the only thing left to do is to take action. For each of your 3-4 goals, write out the initial action step you plan on taking to get you there. Again, be specific and write is on the calendar as if it were an appointment with Jen Sincero herself (or whomever you’d kill to have lunch with).
For instance, if you’re planning on committing to the ketogenic diet on January 14th, your first action step might be to head to Barnes and Noble January 2nd and buy a book on the subject, or to purchase Keto Crush and binge watch all 4 modules. That way once January 14th comes around, you’ll have a plan of action— hell you might even be inspired to begin before your selected start date. Complete this step for each of your 3-4 milestones.
I’d love to hear all about your big plans for 2020, as well as any tips and tricks you may have to offer in setting effective New Year’s Resolutions. Feel free to share in the comments below! And of coarse, the Happiest of New Years to you!
Whether you’re well-versed or brand spankin’ new to keto life and looking for some help, you should check out Katie’s coaching program. Coach Katie lives keto all day, errryday. She keeps up to date on the latest science, so you don’t have to. But more importantly, she addresses your specific goals to help you achieve ultimate success on your keto journey. And it’s always better to have someone in your corner, guiding you along. So if you’re ready for total life transformation and ultimate keto success, schedule your FREE initial keto consultation today!
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