How to accomplish your goals in 2022

2021 was the first year that I put together a very focused and thoughtful list of annual goals. Although I’ve always been goal oriented, I always find that my goals are not as meaningful as they could be, or that I set too many goals for myself. So I spent a lot of time reflecting and researching how to make this process more successful this year. With 2020 & 2021 being years of reflection for many of us, I’m hoping this will be helpful to you too! Below are my tips that will show you how to accomplish your goals in 2022.

Step 1: Set the mood

First things first: you need a set of goals. Not an impossible resolution, or a temporary change. Goals that you can accomplish in one year that will help you become a better person in 2022.

Set aside an afternoon, or even a whole day, with no distractions. I’m an impatient person so this is hard for me. But it will help you make sure your goals are meaningful. Make some tea or coffee, put on an inspiring playlist in the background – or even get out of the house if you need to. I also recommend preparing a little. I found this book & these two podcast episodes helpful:

• Atomic Habits by James Clear
• Mimibee Podcast – New Year Goal Prep Ep #2
• The Simple Sophisticate – 28 Ways to Simplify Your Entire Life

Step 2: Reflect

Asking yourself “what do I want this year?” can be very overwhelming. But starting with reflecting on the past year is an excellent way to help you answer that question.

I find it useful to have a few thought starter questions, like:

• What are you grateful for and what did you accomplish?
• What do you want to do more of in 2022?
• What do you want to do less of this year, and why?
• Which words described 2021, and which words do you want to describe 2022?

These are great starting points that can lead to a brainstorm of ideas & goals. For example, I was incredibly grateful for the travel we were able to do this year. This led me to write a ton of things I wanted to do in 2022, such as:

• Write more travel guides – which led me to…
• Travel more frequently…
• Travel on a budget…
• Spend my money thoughtfully…
• which finally led me to… save money for a house

You will probably come up with a huge list of ideas for how you want your year to look. But they need some structure, some specificity, and some focus.

Step 3: Focus

You want your goals to be meaningful and attainable. For example, a goal like “get in shape for summer vacation” is not as meaningful as “live a healthier life”, or “be happier in my body”. A goal like “become a millionaire” is not as attainable as “getting a promotion” or “spending money more wisely”.

You also want to avoid the trap of setting too many goals. Having a big life-changing goal can be intimidating and overwhelming. Having MANY of these goals can be even more difficult. So, I recommend picking just one major goal in each area of your life to focus on in 2022. The areas may be different for you, but my four focus areas are:

I find it useful to group all of the things I want in 2022 into these four areas. From there, I can pick one meaningful goal per area to stay balanced.

For example, I had tactical things like “decluttering my office” and “donating clothes I don’t wear” in my Home section. But the larger goal I actually wanted to focus on this year became very clear: buying a home. Organizing this way will help you see themes, so you can identify what is an objective that levels up into one meaningful goal. For example, “fit into my favorite pants”, “eating better” and “meditating” are all strategies for “living a healthier life”.

Step 4: Plan the details

So now that you have those four big goals (one for each section), how will you accomplish them? Having an action plan is THE most crucial step to successfully accomplishing your goals in 2022.

Part of my full-time job is advising leaders in my company on how to set goals and make decisions. One thing I like to do is encourage them to do is to plan Goals, Objective, and Tactics.

• A Goal is a broad idea or accomplishment you want to achieve.
• An Objective is a measurable step you can take to help you achieve your goal.
• Tactics are the ways you will achieve that objective – think building better habits.

You can have many strategies for one goal, and many tactics for one objective. But everything should ladder into that one goal. Here’s an example below.

Get a blank printable version of the sheet below when you sign up for my blog updates at the bottom of this post, or by clicking this link.

Tactics are really the key. It’s important to break your goals down into attainable and time-specific habits, mini-goals, or routines. Under the goal of living a healthier life, some of my tactics include:

• 30 minutes of movement (walking, yoga, HIIT, cleaning), 5 times per week
• Meditating 3 times per week
• Drinking 8 glasses of water, 6 days per week
• Reading a book 5 days per week

If you consciously repeat something and build it into your routine, you will eventually create a healthy habit that will help you achieve your goals. Tactics are specific & measurable (for example, 30 minutes 5 times per week), attainable (note that I have “movement” rather than “working out”, which can include cleaning or walking), and meaningful towards helping me achieve my goals.

Step 5: Track your progress

After all that work you put in setting your goals, it’s important to track your progress. There are plenty of free resources you can use for this, like this printable weekly habit tracker I use along with my planner.

You should also pick a timeframe to reflect, measure your progress, and reset your goals. Monthly or quarterly is usually a good idea, depending on how long it will be before you expect to see progress.

And finally (and most importantly)…

Be kind to yourself

Sometimes life gets in the way. There will be some days (or even entire months) where you don’t make progress on your goals. Some of the roadblocks will be out of your control (ahem, COVID) and others may be self-created. But regardless of how much you do or do not accomplish, be kind to yourself. I like to reflect back on the day and think about:

• Something I’m grateful for
• A good deed or happy moment I had
• How I can improve tomorrow

This will help you put your day into perspective, and set you up for success the next day. I’m a fan of this gratitude journal (US link // EU link), since everything is already outlined for you. It also has a built-in weekly habit tracker!

Best of luck with setting your goals for 2022 – I hope it’s your best year yet.