Introducing a new blog series: Monthly Goals!

If you’ve followed along for any lengthy period of time, you’ve heard me use the word “Intentional” about a thousand times. It’s a life-defining word for me, even though friends tease me for how often I use it. I can’t help it! Things don’t happen on their own, and if I want to do more than sit on my tush and watch Netflix all day, I need a plan in place, and a purpose behind that plan, to make things happen.

Dwight Eisenhower once said, “In preparing for battle I have always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.” The point of planning isn’t to guarantee an outcome (we don’t have that much control over our lives, let’s be honest), but rather to increase focus and intentionality along the way.

The purpose of a plan is to live— I want to live deep, not fast. I want to build meaningful, face-to-face relationships with real people, not just online friends. I want to get to know my neighbors. I want our home to be a place of peace and refuge for our family and for anyone else who may enter it. I want to be marked by hospitality. I want cook from scratch as often as possible… because I enjoy it. I want to have deep smile lines. I want to love the life God has given me instead of wishing for something different. I want to start each day in quiet, with a journal, my Bible, and a cup of coffee. I want a strong body, a soft heart, and a listening ear.

I would rather be faithful than famous. I would rather have face-to-face relationships than a large following on Facebook and Instagram. I would rather be present in this moment than multitasking my way through this week and next. I want to live my life with my obituary in mind. What will be said of me when I have nothing left to give? What lasting value will I add, what legacy will I leave? (And is there a way to remove “busy” from my vocabulary??)

I want my children and grandchildren to remember love, mercy, compassion, humility, a servant’s heart, and a mom who always had time to listen. I want them to always know that their parents loved them, loved each other, loved Jesus, and loved other people well. I don’t want them to remember me as a workaholic, stress-obsessed woman without boundaries who never learned to say no.

And if I want that in 30 years, I have to start building that now.

I meet with two other businesswomen once a month to talk about business, goals, challenges & solutions, and help hold each other accountable to actual make progress in our goal lists. I’ve found it SO HELPFUL to write down a list of monthly goals to share with them… and I think it would be helpful to do that here, as well!

August Goals, personl:

• Start working out 3x per week
• Drink 90+ oz of water per day
• Beach vacation
• Finish reading The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up
• Kon-Marie clothing and bathroom
• Host ladies’ clothing swap
• Spend a day at my parents’ home
• Get together with two girlfriends
• Braves v. Nats game (London’s first baseball game!)
• Journal 2x per week
• Plan a date night

August Goals, business:

• Hire an office assistant for the Fall
• List unused photography equipment for sale
• Write out my client experience and evaluate “touch points”
• Work on the Sarah Bradshaw Photography handbook
• Evaluate workflow and look for holes or changes to be made
• Mentor session for Secret Project
• Secret Project business plan, rough draft
• Branding worksheets for Secret Project
• Begin bridal guide
• Write and practice session on Time Management for C@H
• Review pricing and update for 2017
• Write out an “ideal world” job description for myself
• Update website portfolio

I know these are some hefty goals, and I probably won’t get them all done, but I would rather shoot for the stars and fall short than check off everything and still have “steam” left for more things— I would rather know I gave my all than feel I could have done more.

Check in next month to see what I accomplished in August, and read my goals for September!