Goal Setting

photo via designlovefest

Today I am back and sharing about one of my most motivating factors, GOALS. I find for me, the most practical time to set goals is at the beginning of something: the year, the semester, the week, or the day. The two main reasons I set goals are because 1) they keep me on track and motivated and 2) they help me pinpoint what I actually want to achieve, as opposed to a long, ambiguous list of things I need to accomplish at some point.
Something to keep in mind, though, is that you have to keep your goals personal and practical. Don't fool yourself into thinking you can run a marathon just because everyone on Instagram seems to be doing it, when it reality you can barely run a 5k (this is intended as a jab at myself). Focus on what you want to achieve.
Also, make efforts to actually achieve your goals; for me, that means writing them out on paper and putting them in a visible spot, but it also means that I write "work-out" into my planner 4 days a week or "go to coffee with a new person." I will admit that I've been known to write out New Years resolutions every year, but I've found that I don't achieve them unless I post them in a good location and create practical action steps.

Physical: 

Get at least 7 hours of sleep per night/go to bed way earlier. 

Recruitment is still wearing on my body, and I'm getting sick from lack of sleep. It doesn't matter how much fun you think you're having late at night, you have to sleep. Even just three weeks into school, I can tell a huge difference in my mood and energy levels compared to last year.

*inserting a note here to say I'm not doing so hot on this goal. I stayed up until 2 last night watching PLL, but I FINALLY found out who A was. ok continuing**

Exercise 4 times a week. 

Here is an example of making my goals practical. I have some friends who would say their goal is to work out 7 days a week, which is great! That is my end goal eventually (in the far, far future). But, I know that I don't want to work out that many days a week first of all, and second, my schedule will not allow for 7 workouts a week. If I make the goal 7 days a week, I start off failing, and then I just end up feeling guilty. I worked hard this summer to develop a fitness routine and start getting my body back into shape, so I want to try hard to continue it.

Run a 10K! 

Going off of exercise, I want to really focus on getting into running. You might recall that one of my New Year's resolutions was to "become a runner", and while I don't think I'll ever enter a triathlon, I do want to push my body past its normal limits. I actually signed up (and now I'm financially committed) to run a 10K in November, and my end goal is to run the St. Jude half marathon before I graduate.

Personal:

Reach out to new people. 

Even after 5 weeks of being back (2 weeks of recruitment), I already feel like I've gotten to know so many new people. Being at school has taught me to break out of my "comfort bubble" and interact with people I don't know as well.

Get involved on campus. 

My freshman year, I was occupied with two things-school and sorority. Basically every night my first semester was occupied by one or the other. Then second semester came along, and I was pretty burned out on trying new things. This year, I want to try to get involved in other organizations, as well as volunteer more often.

Meal prep

This one is semi-random, but it was brought on by my new living arrangements. This year, I'm staying in an off-campus apartment with three other girls in my sorority. And I have MY OWN ROOM and MY OWN BATHROOM and A KITCHEN. What is life?! Ha. It has been so, so nice having a kitchen. I'm trying to remain semi-healthy with my diet, and also eating out all the time starts to get crazy expensive. The past few weeks I've been trying out a new recipe here and there. My tentative thought is to plan 2-3 meals each week that are quick and easy, and then I'll save leftovers for lunches and other dinners. Also, quick shoutout to Walmart Grocery pick-up. I wish I had invented it.

Reward myself/ Be more fun.

While I'm definitely proud of my academic achievements last year, there is definitely a small part of me who wishes I would have had more fun. I know with my major, lots of sacrifices have to be made, but I don't want to look back on another year of "the 4 best years of my life" and wish I would have gone to that function or stayed out late one night. I'm going to try to create more of a reward system for working hard. Along with this, I am trying to be more spontaneously fun--saying yes to these that I normally wouldn't.

What are some of your goals?