‘Tis the season- for making goals and getting things done! I love Christmas- and I actually also really love January. It feels like a fresh start, a clean slate! I feel rejuvenated after the holidays and ready to tackle the new year- and I always have some goals I want to accomplish!

Those bigger goals can feel a little daunting though. Even though we technically have a whole year- where do you start??

One of the simplest ways you can tackle those bigger projects and goals is to break it down! You have 12 months, 52 weeks- plan accordingly! The best way to make sure something actually gets done is to schedule it in!

If your goal is to try new recipes, set aside one night a week to actually do it! Maybe Friday nights are your new recipe night. If your goal is to have people over for dinner more, maybe you decide that the third Sunday of every month is your hosting night. It takes out half the hard part because you don’t have to figure out when you’re going to find time to work on your goal- it’s already scheduled for you!

Maybe your goal is to organize all your kitchen cupboards. You’re probably not planning on spending 52 weeks on this project, but if you schedule in a weekly slot to work on your kitchen, it’s going to get done! If you spend one hour every Monday morning working on cleaning and organizing your kitchen cupboards and pantry, you’re going to have a squeaky clean pantry in no time!

Another way to approach your goal if it is more project-oriented, is to break it down into steps!

Maybe your goal is to actually make a family cookbook this year. Think of all the steps that might be required to accomplish this big task!

• Reaching out to family for recipes
• Searching out your favorite recipes
• Deciding on chapters and how to actually organize your cookbook
• Finding pictures or taking pictures of various recipes
• Inputting your recipes into Cook’n if they’re not there already
• Print
• Assemble and bind

Make it a goal to get each thing done over the course of a month (or two months, for some of those bigger stepss, like taking pictures of food). While the idea of making an entire cookbook can seem daunting, when you break it down into 6-12 steps, it’s much more manageable! And you’ll have a new cookbook to hand out at Christmas next year. And again, schedule the time in your planner! Set aside Tuesday afternoons for one hour to work on your cookbook, with the goal of completing each “step” over the course of one month (or two for the bigger steps). Getting it on the calendar will make sure it actually happens!

This is such a simple way to approach goals, but it can make all the difference! Break it down and schedule it in your planner, and this can be your best year yet!

What are some of your goals for the new year? I’d love to hear them! Do you feel like this approach could be helpful? Share with us below!

    Camille Hoffmann
    Monthly Newsletter Contributor since 2014
    Email the author! camille@dvo.com