January 2021 Goals To An Awesome Year
2021 is here!!! A fresh start is a must for me in the new year. This one just hits a little different because I’m determined to make this year my best year ever. That’s why I’m setting January goals.
January has a lot of meaning for me. I see this month as the starting season of self-development.
One of my January goals this year is making myself a priority no matter what. What could possibly be more important than ourselves? If we aren’t aligned, how can we expect to succeed in every other area of our lives? How can we expect to create our dream life if we aren’t at our top best?
That’s why my main yearly and January goals will center around myself.
My Main January 2021 Goal
Before breaking down my monthly goals, I like to start with one big goal that involves the monthly ones.
This year, I like to center on myself and my well-being. Why? Because I realized the importance of putting myself first and making myself a priority no matter what.
What could possibly be more important in my life than me? If I am not aligned within my mind, body, and soul, how can I expect to succeed in every other area of our lives? How can I expect to create my dream life if I am not at my top best?
This isn’t in a narcissist way. I want to focus on myself so I can give my best to others and you!
Now that I decided on my main big goal, it’s time to break down my January 2021 goals.
January Goal 1 // Self-Care Is A Priority
After putting myself aside, I experienced meltdowns, several burnouts, and put little things that bring me joy at last. No more this year.
This is going to be a complete game-changer for my day ahead. I’ve realized when I put myself first before work or any other things, I don’t feel overwhelmed.
Since waking up, I’m going to do things I enjoy. Like my miracle morning routine, skincare, and take the time to properly have breakfast.
I will also apply this at night because, to be honest, it’s more damaging to return from work, putting on my pajamas, and sleeping like that.
January Goal 2 // Make Room For Rest
2020 taught me a lot of things, one of them is to listen to what my body and mind need and that means I need to leave room for rest.
Can you believe I only took one week off last year? Truthfully that has not been a positive thing because protecting my mental well-being is just as important as my physical well-being.
I’m making sure I take time off each quarter, in order to give my mind and creativity time to rest and to avoid the draining creative block that creeps in with burnout.
I will also try to rest at least 30 minutes each day. Stress, emotional exhaustion, burnout states, and not feeling energized enough are also not good for performance and productivity.
Perhaps sometimes I will need a nap and other times just meditation to give myself a break, relax, be mindful and disconnect from the outer world and focus on my needs.
January Goal 3 // Start A Gratitude Journal
It’s been more than six months since I haven’t touched my gratitude journal. I started practicing gratitude several years ago.
In the beginning, I was just mentally beigy grateful first thing every morning and the last thing at night but then I started with the 5 Minute Journal.
I like the idea behind this little book because it’s so easy to keep track of gratitude and reflect on today’s happenings. But to be honest, I’m more of a digital person and that’s why I purchased the 5 Minute Journal App.
What I like about the app is it is just like the physical journal. Each day you create a new entry with the same questions. It also comes with a feature to put an image and when opening the app, it pops a daily inspirational quote.
If that wasn’t enough, I can set morning and night reminders just in case I missed to script, and the whole app can be password protected.
One of the cool things is you can add an image to your daily page. Also, the app can be protected by a passcode or fingerprint, and you can export your entries in a PDF file.
You can set notifications in the morning and evening so you don’t forget to journal.
With all those features, having a gratitude journal has never been easy.
January Goal 4 // Be On Top Of My Thoughts
This is a big one, getting rid of limiting beliefs. More than limiting beliefs, I like to call them old beliefs.
We tend to self-sabotage ourselves with our thoughts without even realizing it. It’s like being on autopilot with our mind wandering with negative thoughts throughout the day. And you must know that our thoughts create our reality.
Perhaps you don’t fully realize how our thoughts create our lives but whether there are limiting beliefs like “I don’t have what it takes to succeed at this” or old beliefs engraved deep in our subconscious since we were kids like “you have to work hard to achieve what you want”, at the end of the day that is self-sabotage and it’s stopping you from moving forward and pursuing your dreams.
There are many limiting or old beliefs that I am guilty of and I am working on reframing my mindset daily with my favorite tool: affirmations.
One way you can do this is by writing down all the limiting beliefs that are holding you back and then reframe those thoughts into a positive and motivating statement.
Another tool I will incorporate is persistence because it takes time to create a new mindset. It isn’t enough to affirm a couple times a day if my mind is still on autopilot with the negative thoughts.
Because I’ve done this with other things, I know with time and persistence I will have less negative thoughts and more favorable ones in different areas where I tend to do not do good.
The best of this is that it is reflected back to me by family members, friends, or random people.
January Goal 5 // Let Go Of Control
As an overthinking person, I tend to spiral into hypothetical situations that haven’t even happened!!
Trying to control something I simply cannot lead me to exhaustion, disappointment, and feeling unfulfilled.
This one can be related to the previous goal because with affirmations I can be on the positive side of the situation instead of the negative one.
Another thing I can do to let go of control is as soon as I realize I am on that path, I will do breathing exercises to calm down, perhaps a small meditation and Emotional Freedom Technique Tapping to release any anxiety I experience at the moment.
By not controlling every single thing I allow myself to be on top of my thoughts and I know everything will always work out for me in the best possible way.
When you learn to let go of what you can’t control, you feel like a big weight has been lifted off your shoulder.
January Goal 6 // Celebrate All Wins
We tend to only look at big accomplishments but sometimes, without those small goals, we have never reached the big one.
From now on, I will list every single achievement I make throughout the day. Whether it is doing house chores, a congratulation message from people I interviewed for my articles (did I mention I am a lifestyle journalist), accomplishing my blog goals, or any other thing that comes in my day.
It doesn’t matter if they are big or small, it’s time to celebrate every single win. Besides a boost in confidence, it’s really important to keep track of everything we reach in every single area.
Don’t underestimate little wins because with these actions you also grow inside and get inspired to continue on the success path.
It’s time to see small wins as amazing and realize our days are full of great achievements.
January Goal 7 // Stop Comparing
Everyone’s journey is different and sometimes I tend to compare to others. Why? I don’t know how or where exactly I started doing this but it’s exhausting to compare myself, see my flaws and control the outcomes just to be at the level of other people.
There is no need for comparing because it’s just another form of self-sabotage and I’m done with that. There is a fine line between seeking inspiration in what other people have done and comparing what you are doing to get where they are.
To achieve this goal, I will look into my past to try to understand why I was doing it and I think achieving perfection has a lot to do with this.
Instead, as long as I am satisfied with what I do, I won’t question what could have I done better.
I hope this will inspire you not only to make yearly goals if you haven’t done them already but to realize that you need to be your top priority.
What are your 2021 goals? And most importantly, what is your main yearly goal you want to accomplish in 2021?
Also, see:
+ Everything You Need to Know About Self-Care
+ A Guide to Manifest Anything You Want