2020 Planning

I know it’s the 5th of January and it’s kinda late for this post, but you may still haven't done your new year planning. And also this's to emphasize the fact that any time can be a new beginning, dates are just numbers.

So let’s jump into it.

There are two destinations we’re going to stop at: your current destination and the one you’re heading toward, so let's talk in details down below.

1. Where are you right now?

This is an important part of any planning process and especially if it is a big planning as the new year planning type.

Going wherever your mood tells you at the moment of planning or according to the temptations you are seeing around aren’t going to put in any good destination that will leave you feeling contented.

     So we are going to step backward to see where we're currently: 

reflection:

So we will start the planning process by looking back at your whole past life, and again I say your whole past life. This is because in my believes life can’t be divided and cut down into years-meaning that you need only to look on your past year, or decade. I’m not saying we are not going to do that, but the step of the general life view is important though. 

A. Storytell your life from when you can remember until this very moment:

What has happened in the past?

What are your accomplishments?

What are your low points?

What are your highlights?

What about you relationships?

What about your interests?

You can also categorize your life into:

Health, education, social life, lifestyle, hobbies and whatever category comes to your mind and brainstorm around it your past life.

You don’t have to write everything in detail, you can write the important points and say the others in your head, or you can say it all in your head, because what matters is doing the reflection.

B. The last decade goals:

You may not have goals 10 years ago- I don’t have too, I actually wasn’t introduced to planning even. 

But if you have set some-congrats man!

then look if you have accomplished them?

If you dropped or even forgotten some of them?-believe me this happens even for one month goals especially if you weren’t reviewing them always,we are going to talk about this point later in the post. 

What are the ones you consider doing again or continuing this year?

Are there any goals you discovered are not really alligned with your true self and you just picked them maybe due to all the jaz around them?

Is there any goal you accomplished and want to expand on or go to the next level of it this year?

C. The last year goals:

You will do the same thing you did for the last decade, but for the previous year. This is if you have no ones for the past decade because if you did the reflection part for it, the last year goals would be already covered.

Side note:

You don’t have to feel pressured to answer every questions here, you can even get your own ones, this is just a guide and some prompts to help you.

2. Where to go?

This the part you are all here for. It’s the goal setting and planning part.

A. Your vision for the year:

How do you want to feel in 2020?

Write it down 

Imagine how you want your life to look like?

What do you want to be in it?

Where do you want to be or go?

Whom you want to be with?

What will you want to do on a daily basis?

What do you want to experience?

What adventures you want to be into?

And anyn other questions you can think about that will help you to imagine it.

Write it all down.

B. How can you make this vision a reality?

This is the practical actual part of this whole process, this is the core of the planning.

1. What are the actions needed to be done for this vision to come true?

These are all vague visions and dreams of what you want your life to look like, and they will remain wishes and dreams if no action is taken towards them- or maybe your are fortunate and things happen to you without you moving a dot, but you probably aren’t, actually all of us aren’t.

So what are the practical actions needed?

Write them all down and move to the next step.

2. Can you accomplish them all this year?

Let’s always put reality into our consideration, one year is a long time yeah and we mustn’t underestimate what we can do in it, but at the same time we should not overestimate it.

We still have other life tasks running in the background, life is also happening, and you can’t think blindly and forget that shits are always going to happen, so this is to not pressure yourself with goals that aren’t going to be a source of joy for you because they haven’t been accomplished.

So choose the one which you think you can do this year or you can start this year and let the rest remain unthought and unworried about.

The process of reflection will help you here on knowing what you as an individual can do, and how slow or fast you are, and what you prefer, so you can choose easily and wisely.

And lastly make them as few as possible because again shits happen along the way and you can’t prevent them.

Now as you got your goals for 2020, let’s move into planning.

C. The planning:

1. Date them:

Mark in your calendar or whatever planning system you use any goals needed to be marked, I don’t know, it all depends on your goal, there are some goals can’t be marked.

If there are any ones that don’t have specific time but you can make a date for it, go forward and do this too.

Keep the others and carry them through the months of the year.

2. Deadlines:

It’s easy to be carried through the year thinking that you have enough time and end up procrastinating, and what a better way to not do something more the procrastinatination?!

So the deadline will make sure you have enough accountability to do them, and they will also make you avoid parkinson law:

"work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion"

I know all these goals are supposed to be done before the end of the year, but this is not the deadline I meant, some of the goals may take up to one month, so why letting parkinson law to be applied by not marking one month as deadline?

I don’t have to tell you that you mustn’t put a deadline that is too short and unrealistic.

And as a final note here, don’t put your goals terms backbacked, let always dead time to be in, things are pushed over their estimated time because again shits happen. Later you will thank those dead times where you planned nothing.

3. Baby steps:

Write each of your goals in a separate sheet of paper or individual place or section, you can adjust this by leaving spaces between your goals if they are too short to have a whole page. Nothing is forced here, do what feels right and suitable for you.

For each goal, write down the smallest actions that must be done to accomplish it below it. If they needed to be put in order, then put them in order.

D. Start doing>>

It may seem like it still very early and you still have a whole year, a whole 12 months, but time flies quickly man, and when you start putting things off, the more you’re going to do so and the more you’ll give yourself demontivation- yes this is not a word as I know- to enentually give up the whole goal. 

So just start working and enjoying too.

E. The reviewing process:

If you just planned now and throw your plans into your desk and never ever come back to it, there is a high chance you will come at the end of the year without accomplishing your goals.

And there is a higher chance that you will get out of your way and you will get distracted.

So the reviewing process comes to solve and avoid these problems.

It doesn’t matter if you can’t do it regularly, doing it irregularly aren’t less beneficial, what really matters is that you are actually doing it.

So keep a reminder that will remind you to review many times throughout the year, they may be everyday, every week, every month, every quarter or just random.

It is also stated that it’s a habit of highly successful people to review their goals everyday, but I believe it’s going to work fine too even if it is not done everyday for exact.

Last note:

It’s ok if you change your mind about some goals through the way, it’s not a holy thing that can’t be altered, adjusted or all dropped down.

Remember these goals are for yourself before they are for the accomlishing mission. Whatever feels not good for you to continue pursuing, make yourself a favour and save your time, energy and maybe your money too.

I hope this will help you this year and in your general life too.

And I hope you enjoyed reading it.

Happy New Year!!!

-even if it’s late:)