More than half of 2024 has already passed. For me, the time has gone crazy fast. It feels like a month ago we were celebrating the new year, and now we are already in the second half of the year.
I had set a lot of expectations for myself this year, and some days I feel like I have disappointed myself in some way. This made me think about the reason why — I had no clear goals for these months. How am I measuring whether I should be proud if there were no goals to measure against? — Truth be told, I have expectations of doing something bigger than myself, but I don’t even know what that something is (yet).
I don’t think it’s fair to be harsh on ourselves, if you have any similar feelings around how the first half of your year went, I recommend reading the full post.
Imagine your boss coming up to you, telling you that they are disappointed in you, that you should have done better, but they can’t tell you what you should have done better because they don’t even know. It’s a tough spot to be on right?
I have been very much focused on self-growth this last couple of months. That’s a topic you will see much more in Glow Lab. I wanted to change my approach on goal setting and measuring how I am progressing. As a result, my partner and I made a plan and defined clear goals for the second half of the year, this has helped me understand what I want and what it’s important. I recommend you do the same.
How to plan your second half of the year
First, decide whether you want to make the plan by yourself or if you want to include a family member, partner, or friend. The most important thing, if you do it with someone else, is to make sure it is someone who will stick to the plan with you. Don’t do it with a person who promises things but never delivers.
Think about the person you want to be by the end of the year.
What do they look like? How are they feeling? How are they spending their time, energy, and money? What have they learned? What steps have they taken?
Write realistic but challenging goals. If you really want to move forward in your life, don’t be too easy on yourself. Set goals that you think are maybe a bit too much but still possible.
Write down all these things as if you already have them.
Make categories that make sense in your case, or you can just copy the categories my partner and I used:
Create a plan broken down by category and each goal
Below is a schema you can use to create your own plan
Health: In this category, list all your health-related goals, such as fitness, diet, and overcoming bad habits. Examples:
I quit smoking.
I can run 15km.
I eat home-cooked meals 6 nights a week.
Business: Include any goals related to your career or business here. Examples:
I got promoted.
I grew my social media accounts by [specific number].
I launched my business.
Family and Relationships: Write down goals related to your relationships with family and friends. Examples:
My relationship with my friends is better.
I spent more time with loved ones.
I supported my partner with their goals.
Personal Life: This is for your personal goals, like learning new things and enjoying your hobbies. Examples:
I learned a new skill.
I practiced speaking Spanish every week.
I traveled to a new country.
Finances: Write down all your money-related goals here. Examples:
I paid off my credit card debt.
I saved $5,000.
I have a new source of income.
Spiritual Life: List your spiritual and emotional goals. Examples:
I practice daily gratitude.
I communicate my feelings better.
I learned how to address my core needs.
Action plan
After the plan is ready, you know who you want to be in 6 months—fantastic!
In order to achieve those goals, it is important that you know how you are going to achieve each goal, that’s the action plan!
For every single one of the goals that you wrote down, consider what you need to start doing now to reach that goal by the end of the year.
You want to run a half marathon—start running 3 times a week, and run a bit longer each week.
You want to eat home-cooked meals—plan your meals (I made another post about this, you can read it here), and always have ingredients you can cook at home.
Check in with yourself
Every morning, write down three actions that you are going to take that day to move closer to your goals. Every week, check in with yourself: Have you done the things you committed to? If not, why? At your current pace, are you going to reach your goals? Are you doing enough, or are you maybe pushing too hard?
Put the plan in a place where you can see it every day. You can also make a vision board to support the plan.
Every month, review your goals and action plan and how you are tracking against it.
At the end of the year you will need to have an honest conversation with yourself or the person you made the plan with about how it went.
Celebrate your wins, and if you didn’t reach all your goals, ask yourself why. Then, make a new plan for the next 6 months, keep growing, and keep winning.
One tip: If 6 months seems too far away, do it on a monthly basis for starters, that might feel more exciting and keep you on track, then slowly you can aim for higher and bigger goals!
Thank you for reading!
I hope you will give this practice a try, even with smaller goals. Doing it was very nice for my partner and I, understanding our goals is good for us individually and for our relationship. It helps us to support each other and push each other forward.
If you have any questions about this, or if you have better ideas, let us know in the comments!
Much love,
Tia Katariina