Intentionally Design Your Thriving 2022: A Powerful 5 Step Planning Resource
Download the 2022 planning resource (PDF)
Learn more about planning for 2022
For so many of us our 2021 (and 2020) plans were thrown out the window. If you’re anything like me, part of 2020 and 2021’s process was about grieving the “way things were”, grieving all the plans that couldn’t happen and adapting to new ways of working and being. So, I’m looking into 2022 wanting to move forward with positivity and momentum. I (Jen) have spent significant time pulling my best goal setting techniques, ideas and tools into creating this resource as I wanted to create a practical, adaptable goal setting & planning resource for 2022. This isn’t about how to set great New Year’s Resolutions. This resource is about how you can make progress in 2022 no matter what’s happening in work or life. Importantly, it provides you with tools, questions and a framework to INTENTIONALLY DESIGN YOUR THRIVING 2022 so you give your time and energy to the things in life that matter to YOU.
P.S. This blog is a high level version of what I’ve created. If you’d like the more in-depth version with templates to fill in, please fill in your details above (this is so we can also send more helpful resources and opportunities throughout the year when they’re ready to help you achieve your Intentionally Designed & Thriving 2022) :)
Let’s get started – what does a successful 2022 look like to you?
I believe that success is not defined by your job title, income, or by ticking off traditional markers of societal success. I want to propose a different definition of success:
Success is having the opportunity to give your time and energy to the things in life which matter to you.
I also recommend you take the time to reflect on the previous year before defining what your thriving 2022 looks like. There is a simple 3 step process for this on our blog here.
The problem with New Year resolutions
Don’t get me wrong. I love the notion of “new year, new me” and “this year I’m going to be better at smashing my goals and living my best life”. However, in my experience and training as a coach I’ve learned that these well-intentioned resolutions are often just that: well-intentioned. They’re often a False First Start. For some reason, when we write down these resolutions our brain equates this with us having made progress to achieving them. In reality we’ve simply written some ideas down. While having a list of goals and resolutions is important, it’s only the beginning.
So, like you, I’m wanting to do something differently and more intentionally in 2022. Especially after the year that was. I’m creating this resource for ALL of us (as I haven’t yet been able to find a cost effective or adaptable version of this).
01. First - reflecting on reality
To prepare for this first step more thoroughly, you may want to first complete 2021 Reflections – a quick three question process.
A useful starting point is to get a clearer picture of where we currently are. Focusing on our development can sometimes make us feel that our life needs to change or improve in some way, when really there is a lot to be thankful and grateful for. Please do not feel you need to compare yourself to others, or define your own success in other's terms. The reflection exercises below are important as they balance reflecting on what you're grateful for, with things you'd like to change.
[a] Reflecting on reality
[1] What areas of my life am I happy with and why?
[2] What areas of my life do I want to change and why?
[3] In the future, what things DO I want and why?
[4] In the future, what things DON'T I want and why?
[b] Wheel of Life activity
If you prefer to print this out to fill out the chart below – you can download the PDF here.
HOW TO
The Wheel of Life is a simple exercise to help you assess your satisfaction with the various areas in your life. For each of the sectors on the chart, rank yourself on a scale of 1 to 10. For example, if you are feeling great about your Personal Development, you might give yourself a “9”. You would then shade in nine-tenths of the Personal Development segment, starting from the inside out.
EVALUATION
The diagram below, when completed, can give you a picture of how your life currently matches up with how you want it to be, along with giving greater clarity in what you want to work on with your coach. If you’re not sure how to interpret the chart when you’re finished, have a chat with a coach or someone you've entrusted to share your goals.
02. Define your vision
This first step is really worth a bit of time and thought. One of the biggest mistakes people make (including myself in the past) is setting goals that don’t align with a broader vision. It’s super common to create goals for the year without figuring out where we want to go. It’s also common to set goals without articulating WHY we want the goal. Even if you only do this first part of the process, you’ll still have an overarching framework that you can use to decide what you’d like to achieve in the year :)
“Unhappiness is not knowing what we want and killing ourselves to get it.”
- Don Herold
[a] But, Jen, what if I don’t know what my broader vision is? Start with who inspires you
All good, my friends! It’s not like we’re going to walk outside tomorrow and the Piano of Purpose falls on all of our heads and all things become clear (thanks to Brendon Burchard’s excellent High Performance Habits book for this metaphor!).
“You generate clarity by asking questions, researching, trying new things, sorting through life’s opportunities, and sniffing out what’s right for you. … Clarity is the child is careful thought and mindful experimentation. It comes from asking yourself questions continually and further refining your perspective on life.
Clarity research tells us that successful people know the answers to certain fundamental questions: Who am I? (What do I value? What are my strengths and weaknesses?) What are my goals? What’s my plan?”
- Brendon Burchard (High Performance Habits)
A great starting point is figuring out who your role models are. Who inspires you? Who else is doing what you want to do someday? If they’re already doing it, it’s evidence you can also do it!
[b] Wanting to get even more clarity on your future vision?
Go further with your “future focus” to get greater clarity:
describe how you want to FEEL in upcoming endeavours
know what conditions could destroy your enthusiasm, sense of satisfaction & growth
WHO DO YOU WANT TO BE IN THE FUTURE? Define what character traits/states you want to be or embody consistently! Jen’s example: For the last year I’ve had 3 silent alarms that go off throughout the day on my phone with the 3 words: LOVE, ENERGISED & CENTERED. These words articulate what I want to consistently embody. While I don’t embody these 100% of the time (I’m human after all), these words act as a check-in point during the day.
Handy tip:
I use the Emotional Culture Deck to map out [1] how I feel with I’m thriving and [2] what I feel when I’m struggling. They’ve got a free PDF download of this on their website :). Understanding these two personal “states” has been vital as it gives me awareness for when I’m starting to go down the path of struggling and stress AND it gives me invaluable information of what activities and life/workload enable my thriving.
[c] Importantly: define your WHY
One of the things that I’ve written underneath all goals over the last 3 years is: When you feel like giving up, remember WHY you started.
Defining WHY you want to do something is critical for keeping going after weeks 1 or 2. Neuroscience research shows us that it takes approx. 66 days for a habit to become automatic, so defining your why and putting it into a memorable format will help on the days you’re feeling tired or unmotivated (which happen to all of us).
03. Build your own curriculum: what SKILLS are you needing to develop now & in the future?
Creating my own “Intentional Curriculum” in 2020 was a game changer. I managed to stick to it for the first third of the year until work and life events took over, and the benefits carried over into 2021. I’m looking to restart this in 2022 as it’s incredibly powerful and wanted to share this tool with you - also inspired by Brendon Burchard’s High Performance Habits :)
The steps:
Think about your primary area/field of interest and write down 3 skills that make people successful in that field
Under each skill, write what you will do to develop it and when you’ll do it. Note: will you spend 3 months, 6 months, 1 year working specifically on developing the specific skillset?
Schedule in blocks of time for learning and practicing it in your calendar or diary
Think again about your primary field of interest and write down 3 skills that you will need in order to succeed in that field 5-10 years from now. Keep those skills on your radar and start developing them sooner than later.
A note on scheduling in blocks of time for learning:
“Learning” can come in many formats: e.g.
in-person or online learning or training
coaching
reading
a mastery-oriented hobby (guitar, language learning, cooking, dancing etc)
If developing your skillsets is something important to you I recommend you decide how much time you can realistically dedicate to learning each week and then make a non-negotiable “date with yourself” for this time. Blocking out a bit of time afterwards to reflect and plan your week on a Sunday morning or early evening is also powerful :)
04. Goal setting
What’s clear from a huge amount of research on goal achievement is that having a limited number of unambiguous and challenging goals is key. What does this mean?
Making goals that are unambiguous and challenging
Simply:
Set goals that are specific and that “stretch” you. You may also like to add a degree of flexibility into the goal, for example: “increase my running speed to 5.0 km/h or better”, “read 12 books or better in 2022” or “earn $100,000 or better in 2022 and donate 10% or more to an aligned charity”.
Define what your WHY is for achieving these goals
Give yourself a target date to help keep yourself following through
Define what “success” looks like - how will you know when you’ve accomplished your goal? Is there a measurement that can be attached to it?
Some notes on goal achievement
The first step in goal achievement is showing up. From the action of showing up continuously, we build momentum. From momentum comes motivation. We often think that we need motivation to get started. It’s actually the opposite - we need to start with action and showing up for ourselves. (See image above/right). The continuously showing up is where your why comes in! :)
During normal times, focusing on 3 key areas of focus and having in each focus area either (a) 1 goal per year or (b) 1 goal per quarter is advisable. For example: my 3 key areas of focus are (1) wellbeing, (2) relationships/whanau and (3) for-purpose work. I intend to set and stick to 1 goal in each area per quarter (so, 3 goals per quarter). If I achieve the goal early, I have “wish list projects” on the back burner.
In times of uncertainty and change it’s critical we double down on our wellbeing and activities that keep us feeling grounded. In these instances I recommend simplifying your goal setting: focus on building momentum in ONE goal. Why? During times of uncertainty it takes our brain and nervous system extra energy to navigate the daily changes, challenges and activities. Getting a sense of momentum and achievement from making progress in one goal is infinitely better than trying to do 10 different goals all at once, making incremental progress, feeling dissatisfied at this lack of progress and risking burning out.
Accountability: accountability exponentially enhances your potential for achieving your goals. See “The Quarterly Review + Accountability” below for more on this.
05. The Quarterly Review + Accountability
If 2021 has taught us anything it’s that life plans can change, but dreams don’t. This is why reviewing your goals and plans at regular interviews, e.g. investing 2-3 hours every 3 months to check-in with how you’re doing is a great time investment.
In 2020 I was fortunate enough to be on the RYLA Oceania leadership development programme with 23 other emerging leaders from around Australasia. One of the most powerful aspects of the programme was the accountability aspect. Every month we had to input our progress on our goals (so the facilitators could share with the group strategies that were working & be able to check-in with people that might need extra support), whether our priorities had changed, our reflections on the month and submit a mini-report on our accountability buddy’s progress.
The below African Proverb summarises the power of accountability and programmes like this:
“If you want to go fast, go alone.
If you want to go far, go together”
- African Proverb
Register your EXPRESSION OF INTEREST for 2022 group coaching
I’m contemplating supporting a small group (up to 8 lovely humans) during 2022 with their goals with a mixture of resources, monthly 1:1 coaching, a check-in forum/spreadsheet & quarterly “spotlight session” review sessions where the group supports the reviewing of each person’s goals. If you’d be interested in an offering like this, please fill in this form or email hello@intentionalgenerations.com
