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My Goals for April | Goals vs. Habits

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Happy Wednesday, friends! I hope you’re having a good day. Today I’m going to be talking about the role of goals in our lives and how goal setting needs to be actionable in order for you to make progress. But I’ll also be sharing some thoughts on goals vs. habits. I hope it inspires you in your own life!

I woke up Sunday morning feeling very energetic and excited about cleaning my house. I had told my girls, Hannah and Laura the night before that we’d be tackling some major house cleaning today so they could mentally prepare.

We ate a breakfast of steep cut oats with flax seeds, dates, wheat germ, walnuts, and cream. It was very good! It’s been a long time since I’ve made steel cut oats. I just generally cook rolled oats because that’s what we typically buy. But the steel cut oats were very filling and a great way to start the day.

As soon as breakfast was over I began giving the girls instructions about what I wanted them to do and we worked together to get a lot done. I also tackled cleaning my dressing room and closet today which unfortunately was a big job! I’ve purchased quite a few new clothes recently and it was time to purge old clothes.

Anyway, so I felt really good about everything we accomplished on Sunday. It also made me want to set new goals for the next few weeks.

Speaking of goals, I read this very interesting article by James Clear that got me thinking. In this article he suggests that setting goals without a process to achieve those goals is actually counterproductive. He says:

We all have things that we want to achieve in our lives — getting into the better shape, building a successful business, raising a wonderful family, writing a best-selling book, winning a championship, and so on.

And for most of us, the path to those things starts by setting a specific and actionable goal. At least, this is how I approached my life until recently. I would set goals for classes I took, for weights that I wanted to lift in the gym, and for clients I wanted in my business.

What I’m starting to realize, however, is that when it comes to actually getting things done and making progress in the areas that are important to you, there is a much better way to do things.

— James Clear

I found this interesting because by nature I am a goal setter. But I realized after reading this article that I am usually successful in reaching my goals because I don’t just set goals. I create a plan to reach those goals. James Clear called it systems… I would probably call it habits. Same thing right?

I also loved a few of the points he made. He made the statement: “Goals reduce your current happiness.”

Wow!

That’s the thought that went through my head when I read that statement. He made the suggestion that when we set goals we are essentially saying that “I’m not good enough yet, but I will be when I meet my goal.”

Goals vs. Habits

So, in one sense I agree with this statement. We need to be okay with who we are today. I’m not perfect. I make a lot of mistakes. I can’t seem to lose those last few pounds. Some days I completely throw out my plan because I just don’t feel like doing it.

And those are things that make me feel like a failure – because I’m not reaching my goal to lose more weight, not make the same mistakes over and over again, or my inclination to be lazy sometimes.

But what if I simply committed to a new habit?

Yes, I have a goal to lose 15 more pounds. Well, in all honesty, I’m not as committed to the goal of losing 15 more pounds because I know that muscle weighs more than fat. So, I suppose I’m more after having my clothes fit in a way that makes me happy. So, how do I get to the place where my clothes fit well?

This year I’ve created new habits that will help me reach my goal. But will those habits cease once the goal is reached? Nope! Because I’ve made lifestyle changes. In other words I’ve changed the way I live so that my overall health is better.

Okay, so having said all of that, now I want to share with you some of the things I’m working on currently. My list isn’t very long. I used to have a lot of goals and plans, but the season of life I’m in right now is so full and busy that I don’t want to overwhelm myself.

Faith

Scripture Memory

I’m committing to learning a new Scripture verse each week. This is something I’ve done in the past but it’s been a while. We’ve been so busy that somehow it just has fallen by the wayside. So the girls and I are going to work on this together. Some of the verses we’ll go over and memorize are verses I’ve memorized in the past that I want them to learn, but we’ll focus on them together. Bible verses to learn in April:

  • Isaiah 1:18, “Come now, let us settle the matter,” says the Lord“Though your sins are like scarlet,  they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.
  • Psalm 27:1, “The Lord is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid?”
  • Isaiah 40:28, “Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom.”
  • Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Bible Journaling

I’m still really enjoying coloring in my Bible. Most weeks I do at least one page in my Bible. They usually take me an hour or less and quite often I will draw and color while listening to the sermon in church.

Bible Journaling @ AVirtuousWoman.org

This isn’t so much a habit is it is something I’m just enjoying doing for myself. That’s important too! It’s something I can do that makes me contemplate and connect with God’s Word in a new way. Plus, it’s something that I can connect and do with my daughters as they are really enjoying it too!

Here are a few things you can purchase if you’d like to get started:

Homemaking

So, I have this renewed energy for homemaking. Over the long, long winter I felt as if I’d lost a lot of motivation for homemaking. I was just kind “blah” about all of it. I was always behind. We travel all the time. And during October through the end of January I was hardly home at all. And when I was home I had so much to do I could never catch up.

So, one of the new habits I’m desiring to create is that my youngest two daughters {the only kids still living at home} help me more. It’s not like they don’t help me – because they do. And they rarely complain. We just haven’t had a good system in recent months because we’ve been so busy.

This may take me some time. We’re actually out of town today and tomorrow and next week we’ll be traveling Monday thru Sunday. And in two weeks we’ll be on another trip and then we’ll finish the last two weeks of May on the road. And in between those trips we’re gone three days a week every week – that’s our regular weekly schedule. Crazy, I know.

But, the goal is to create a better system for when we are home so that things run a little smoother. Right? That’s what I’m going with! The good news is that we’ve accomplished a lot at the house and it’s looking great. Which makes it much easier to tidy up when we are home.

30 Days of Intentional Homemaking

With my renewed excitement for homemaking, I felt inspired to challenge myself and you can join me!! to 30 days of intentional homemaking. This 30 Day Challenge will begin April 16, 2018 and I can’t wait to get started! If you’d like to join me you can fill out the form at the end of this post or read more about it here.

Intentional Homemaking 30 Day Challenge @ AVirtuousWoman.org

Motherhood

I want to spend more time in the Word of God with my girls. Life can get so hectic that we don’t spend enough time in worship together. I’m not sure what this will look like in the coming weeks. Right now we spend some time each Sabbath reading a few chapters together and the girls will ask me questions as we read and/or we will discuss in depth ideas spurred by the readings.

I’m super excited about a few of the resources in this year’s Ultimate Homemaking Bundle that will help me bring my family closer to God.

There are several resources to help you and your family grow closer to each other and to God. Here are a few of my favorites:

  • Choose Rest: Biblical Self-Care Practices by Gina Poirier ($37.00)
  • Faithful Moms Summer Planner by Erika Dawson ($17.00)
  • Planting Seeds: How to Cultivate a Love of Scripture in Your Child’s Heart by Crystal Brothers ($7.99)
  • Four Ways to Study the Bible by Sarah E. Frazer ($18.00)
  • Godly Character Traits: A Training Guide for Families by Bonni Greiner ($9.95)
  • Wives of the Bible: 25 Easy Lesson You Can Learn from These Imperfect Women to Radically Transform Your Marriage by Jolene Engle ($8.99)

PLUS, my own ebook, From Chaos to Calm is available in PDF format as well as the brand new Kindle version!

These fantastic resources will help you

  • Explore the biblical truths behind rest and then dig into the practical application of self-care physically, mentally/emotionally and spiritually.
  • Plan and implement a purposeful summer for your family
  • Learn games, activities, and exercises to make Bible study time fun and increase your child’s memory and understanding of the verses and passages being studied
  • Discover four separate ways to study the Bible, prayer resources, reading plans, writing scripture challenges, and five steps to start your Bible study habit!
  • Learn how to instill fifteen godly character traits in your children
  • Discover 25 biblical and relatable lessons from wives in the Bible to help you transform your marriage

All of these are part of the Ultimate Homemaking Bundle, a collection of eCourses, eBooks, printables, workbooks, membership sites, and more! 

For example, the resources above are worth $98.00 That’s 3 times more than the price of the bundle itself!

Everything in the bundle can be yours, but only if you buy it before it goes off sale on Monday at midnight! But don’t wait too long. It’s only on sale until Monday!

Personal Goals

So, I’ve talked a lot about how I’m working to lose weight and get in shape in recent weeks. I’m still going to the gym three times a week and trying to be active the other days of the week.

I’m continuing to eat well most days. I limit my snacks and don’t drink my calories. I’m working on increasing my water intake – I do drink a lot of water, but I need to drink more. I think I average about 6 glasses a day. I’d like to increase that amount to 8 or 10 glasses a day. My biggest problem is just remembering to drink the water. Usually when I do drink water during the day I’ll drink 8 ounces at a time.

Some of the food I’ve eaten this week:

The other personal goal I have for myself right now is to get dressed and look nice every day. Okay so I failed to get dressed on Monday, but once every now and then is okay. But day in and day out I want to look my best. I got tired of always feeling like a tired, old, frumpy mom! I don’t want to look old and one day I realized that the way I dress, fix my hair, and do my make up really makes a huge difference in how old I look.

Part of my probelm has always been not quite knowing what to wear or how to put outfits together. When I discovered GYPO Style Challenges last month it was a game changer for me! My other problem was that I had a habit of mostly wearing mom jeans, old t-shirts, and basic tennis shoes. So while these outfits are probably not going to make the cover of a magazine, I feel really pretty when I wear blouses, skinny jeans/ pants, and flats or boots.

I’ll be talking more about my re-learning how to dress myself in an upcoming post. But here’s three outfits I wore this week and loved:

Oh and guess what? You can get a style challenge for free when you purchase the Ultimate Homemaking Bundle by Thursday, April 12 at midnight!

Blogging & Business

As for my main goal this month, I am working on a new book. I’ve written the outline and one page so far. I need to set more time aside each week toward working on the new book. I’m already so busy it’s hard to find extra time, but this is important and I need to force myself to sit down and get it done!

I created a new storefront for A Virtuous Woman. I’m so excited about it! You can see the Purpose 31 Bookstore here. Isn’t it lovely? My goal for this is to finish adding all of my products and get it done.

I’m sure happy with it and I hope to offer even more practical, inspiring products for you all to enjoy! So, I think that’s all of my goals, uh habits I’m working on,  for this month.

How do you feel about goals vs. habits? I’d love to hear about it in the comments below!

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