Do you ever feel frustrated and overwhelmed by the New Year’s resolutions and goals talk? Wonder how to get started? These thoughts led me to remember something that happened to me a few months ago. Stick with me now, it’s not your typical goal story…

Wind Storm

There was a crazy, windy storm at our house. The wind howled and the air swirled. Our huge maple trees swayed and any loose or weak branches gave way and scattered throughout our yard. After the storm was over, I wanted to gather many sticks for firewood and get the yard cleaned up. As I stood on the porch surveying the damage, I was in awe of just how powerful that wind storm was and surprised at the amount of cleanup necessary.

I wandered through the yard picking up the big sticks and dragging them around back to the wood pile. After I removed the large obvious sticks, I wanted to pick up as many of the smaller ones as I could. I quickly became overwhelmed by the vast amount of small branches that were scattered across the yard. I felt like I was going back and forth between the same spots and still finding sticks upon sticks. It was as if I completely overlooked some sticks as I kept changing my focus. For a moment I thought, how in the world am I ever going to get all these sticks out of the yard?!?!

A New Plan

Silly, maybe, but most days as a mom, my frustrations can end up misplaced. And I just know I’m not alone with that, right!?! So, I took a deep breath and thought, ok what is the best way to handle this? Focus on what is right in front of me, literally! My new plan became walk up and down the yard picking up what’s right in front of me in as straight a line as I could visualize. As I started carrying out my new plan, I felt empowered and I could quickly see my progress. I was able to get all those sticks picked up without losing my mind and taking over my day! What an awesome accomplishment!!!

How familiar do those feelings sound? Overwhelmed by the big goal? Want that feeling of accomplishment and pride? While most people have stopped talking about resolutions by mid-February, it is not too late to start writing out your resolutions, goals, and dreams for this year.

Here are 4 steps to get from cluttered yard to clean yard:

1. Start with the big picture – Cleaning up the yard, losing weight, starting a business, saving money, etc. Write it down, visualize it, how do you want to feel when you accomplish it?

2. Break it down– Take the big picture and break it into manageable chunks that you can focus on right in front of you – pick up big sticks, find a gym buddy, get your budget in order, etc. Choosing SMART goals is a great way to break your big picture down. Think: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timeline, SMART!

3. Take action– Now that you have your plan, just get going. Pick up the sticks, go to the gym, design that product, tell someone your dreams, get creative with saving, etc. Get it in motion. Every day pick 1 thing you can do to move forward towards your goal.

4. Reevaluate and celebrate– Check your progress every 30 days. Make sure to celebrate your wins and every small accomplishment! From there, reevaluate and see where you need to tweak your plan. Am I missing any sticks, am I going to the gym, am I starting my business, am I working on designing a product, am I saving money?

Go ahead and tackle your cluttered yard! Stick to it! I know you can do it!