It's All About Balance (Free Goal Sheet)

Have to get dressed.
Make the bed.
Make Breakfast.
Dress the kids.
Start the Laundry.
Empty the dishwasher.
Mail the bills.
Call the doctor.
Go to the bank. And this is just for the morning agenda!!!! We have so many things coming at us in life that we can get caught up spending our time in only one area. Truth is most of us have many different places, people or causes that call for our attention. It is easy to get so wrapped up in what we are doing right now, that we forget about the other areas that we are committed to as well. I found a way to focus on it all. It's all about balance!

I have had people as me how I manage so many things at the same time without going nuts and this is how. I make goals, organize the items I need and the tasks I have to complete, and then I start working my plan! But here is a hint that took me many years to figure out.

YOU CAN NOT BE PERFECT AT EVERYTHING!! Give yourself a break!

Do you know that it has been said we are hardest on ourselves? I believe it!! There is always going to be someone out there that can doing things better than you can. But you must remember there are things that you can do better than others. We need to stop trying to be perfect or stop trying to be like someone else. As long as you do YOUR BEST to whatever you set your hand too, that is all that matters!

²³ And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, ²⁴ knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ. Colossians 3:23-24

For example, I have a family member that is a neat freak. I mean you can eat off their floor!! The laundry they take off at night is washed and put away the next morning! For years and I mean YEARS, I tried to be like they were. I cleaned 24/7! No matter how hard I tried my house never looked as clean as theirs did. I would yell if anyone left anything out of place and I could not enjoy my family because I never sat down from cleaning! But then it hit me. I have 3 kids at home and this person did not have any living at home anymore! If it was only my husband and myself, my house would be spotless too! I had sat a goal that was not realistic for me or my family! Now, I do heavy cleaning on the weekends and spot clean through the week. It is far from spotless but it is not a pig pen either. If you set unrealistic goals or unattainable goals, you will burn out quickly. So here is what I do.

On Sundays, I sit down with the following sheet and I plan!
In life it is not possible to focus on only on thing at a time. We have 

multiple things going on all the time.We have to make sure that we INTENTIONALLY work on every area that we have commitments in. For example, if I don't work on my marriage, it can suffer. If I do not work at spending time with my kids, I will always be doing other things and miss having fun with them while they are little. It's all about balance!!

When I sit down to make my goals, I make them measurable and attainable. For instance, I want for my house to be so organized that when you sneeze it can be found filed away in a manilla folder. Okay, so maybe not a sneeze, but you get my point! But if I put, "Organize the house" as a goal under the Home section then at the end of the week I am going to be highly disappointed when the whole house is not organized. That is not measurable nor attainable. Instead I may put something like, "Organize my night stand" or "Organize pots and pans." That is something measurable-I can tell if I have completed it or not because I have listed the specific item, and this is a goal that is attainable. I can find time to organize my nightstand or pots and pans, but the whole house in a week, ah no! 

I go through and make ONE goal under each section. This is not a to do list so I want to make sure I am taking into consideration my prior engagements this week, work schedule, etc. when setting these goals. After I have listed one goal under each category, I go back and fill in a second goal- under each category- if I can think of more than one that I want to accomplish in that area. 

The key is NOT to accomplish every goal under every category but rather to accomplish at least one under every category. This ensures that you are working equally on every area of your life instead of overloading in one area and ignoring another. Keep your filled out goal sheet somewhere that you can look at it every day. That way you can "grade" yourself through out the week to make sure you are on target.

At the end of the week I take a look and see how I did. If my goals achieved were " balanced" I give myself a pat on the back. If I was stronger in one area more than the others, I strive to do better next week. If you get to the end of the week and you have not done anything at all you had listed, you need help. Laughing as I type! No seriously, if you do not plan where you want to go you will not end up anywhere at all. To see improvement or progress, you have to make an effort!

You can download the sheet like I have pictured above here.
Or I have a generic version here.

How about you? Do you do goal planning? Have any tips to share? If this form or post helps you in anyway, I would love to hear about it!