Tun­ing your goals for a suc­cess­ful year.

First, make a list of things you are proud of achiev­ing in the past year. 

We are often demand­ing with our­selves, and we don’t empha­size enough the impor­tance of giv­ing our­selves credit for our small vic­to­ries. Ask your­self the ques­tion: What are you celebrating?

What I’m cel­e­brat­ing this month:

I’m afraid of pub­lic speak­ing, height, and being under­wa­ter. This year, I can say that I made baby steps towards con­quer­ing my anxieties:

• I gave a speech about entre­pre­neur­ship and start­ing my busi­ness in China in front of 30 people.

• I hiked on the Great­wall of China off the beaten path, and esca­lated bro­ken tow­ers despite my vertigo.

• I got my open water div­ing cer­tifi­cate, although I tried to give up on the sec­ond day and hide from my instruc­tor. My excuse was, that I had asthma and res­pi­ra­tory anx­i­ety dur­ing my whole child­hood up to teenage.

What I learned from these expe­ri­ences is that “You are not your fears, and your fears do not define who you are.”

They are just thoughts in your mind.

Jump­ing out of your com­fort zone, may pro­vide much relief and boost your confidence.

Share your achieve­ment with your friends, your part­ner, your fam­ily, and make it a celebration!

Sec­ond, make a list of goals for this year: What are your inten­tions and priorities?

You may want to med­i­tate a few min­utes before­hand to clear your mind and con­nect with yourself.

Dur­ing a coach­ing ses­sion last year, exec­u­tive coach Dal­ida Turkovic sug­gested me to make S.M.A.R.T goals. Your goals should be:

1. Spe­cific
2. Mea­sur­able
3. Achiev­able
4. Rel­e­vant
5. Time-Bound

Exam­ple:

1. I want to speak Span­ish flu­ently, with enough vocab­u­lary and lis­ten­ing comprehension
2. I will be able to have a 10 min­utes con­ver­sa­tion with a Span­ish person
3. 5 new words each day
4. I will spend 10 min­utes each day using podcasts
5. 5-August 2015

I like to make a draw­ing to sym­bol­ize your pur­pose. Use color pen­cils if you have some! I would frame the draw­ing and place it above my desk or keep it in my wal­let as a reminder. This is also a nice and fun activ­ity to share with some­one special.

Good luck with your endeav­ors, be kind to your­self and keep in mind: