Recently, I stumbled onto a different kind of goal setting and I am all about it. Even though it might seem a little cliché, goal setting is so crucial in helping us achieve our goals and dreams. Sometimes, reflecting on our goals also give us a chance to see how much we have grown since the time of goal setting. For example, I have my 27 before 27 list right here and while I am still trying to cancel some of the items off, some of my goals have changed which render some on the list irrelevant to my life currently.
While it is important to set goals for ourselves, it is even more important to take specific actions to inch our way closer to achieving them. As they say, a goal without action is really just a dream.
I found this post by lifebygrit on Pinterest and I really loved it. Thus, I decided to do some reflection using the 5-4-3-2-1 goal setting system and pen them (well technically, type them) here.
So what exactly is the 5-4-3-2-1 goal setting method? You basically set up goals for 5 years, 4 months, 3 weeks, 2 days and the next hour.
5 Years
I wasn’t really one for 5 year plans before, but upon reflecting how much my life has changed in just 2 years, I think a general plan and road map for the next five years seems appropriate and useful. By then, I would be 32 years old. Oh my. In no particular category, here are some of my 5 year goals (I feel exposed listing them all) in no particular order:
- I am teaching yoga and connecting with like-minded souls all around the world
- I am fit and in the best shape of my life
- I have travelled to New Zealand, New Delhi, Mexico, Los Angeles and South Africa
- I am living in another country (currently, Bali tops the list)
- I have a dog! (or two, or three….)
- I have my very own successful business
4 Months
As mentioned in the blog post, there are 15 chunks of 4 months in 5 years. Here, these are more of the habits you need to help yourself achieve those 5 year goals. She talks about setting one or two key habits that you would like to focus on. You can aim for new ones once these habits have been routinised. I’m drafting this on 1st September so I have exactly 4 months till the end of 2019! Ultimately, as mentioned in my post about The Compound Effect by Darren Hardy, what you do everyday is more important than anything else. So here are some three habits I aim to implement now till the end of 2019.
- Get out of bed by 8am daily.
- Do yoga and meditate every morning.
- Work out 4 times a week (2 sessions to be strength training)
3 Weeks
This is a foreseeable timeline where we can actually plan a few mini goals, if you will. It could be personal challenges for growth, or goals that could inch you closer and provide a stepping stone to achieving those larger 5 year goals mentioned earlier. While I have a tendency to list many goals at once, I think I am going to just focus on these 3 goals for the upcoming weeks:
- Book my flight and accommodation to Bali for my Yoga Teacher Training in November.
- Settle into a night time routine and get to bed by midnight.
- Work on my Makeup Masterclass for Face for Skillshare (I already have my Makeup Masterclass for Eyes on Skillshare, if you’re interested!)
2 Days
The point here is to get started now. There is no point in procrastinating and waiting for the right time to arrive. It also doesn’t make sense to make a vague goal such as I will workout. What time? What workout? Where? Plan it to the tee and be very specific so that when the time comes to execute it, your lizard brain ain’t gonna give you any excuses. For the next two days, I will:
- Go to the condo gym in the morning at 9am for 45 minutes before meeting my friends for lunch.
- Draft the script and recording guidelines for the Makeup Masterclass for Face.
1 Hour
Lastly, we have an hour. I love what she wrote in the post that I had to share.
“Those five years are made up of 43,800 hours. You’ll be the one to choose what to do with every single one of those hours, starting with this one right now. Nothing changes if nothing changes. What can you do right now to work toward your goal.”
So true. So in the next hour, I am going to:
- Switch off my computer.
- Write down components in my night-time routine and the time to do them nightly.
- Read my yoga book (I’m currently reading The Harvard Medical School Guide to Yoga)
- Do a little mini night time yoga stretch and off to bed I go!
While these goals are personal and subjective to me, I hope that by sharing them, you’d be inspired to create your own list! I decided to take some time today to figure these out as I am feeling quick sluggish recently and have been letting my habits and determination slide. But, it is 1st of September and a brand new month. I gotta get it together. So here we are.
Will you be trying out the 5-4-3-2-1 goal setting method? Share with me some habits you would like to achieve in the next 4 months below!
Till then,
