The 20^th of December was my last work day of previous year. During my days off work I can say that I used my time off well. I’ve mostly spent time with my loved ones, relaxed and I’ve spent some time writing down my goals for 2019. I think it’s important to set achievable goals, because it gives me something to work towards to.

The right tools, for the right job

Last year I finished my trilogy by completing the manuscript for The Xoron Redemption. After that I momentarily fell into a void of sorts. I had no idea what to do next, even though I knew I had to continue writing for my fourth novel. I did work on it in November, during NaNoWriMo, but somehow I couldn’t really put myself to it. It wasn’t until later that month that I realized that perhaps taking a little break from writing was okay, and not something to feel bad about.

I’ve been planning and setting yearly goals for myself since 2016. I’ve used a method that’s handy, and allows you to keep track of every goal. This method I picked up from an article on the Evernote website, and it’s been an annual thing for me. I really look forward to making plans, and setting goals, because it gives me something to work on. It’s a way to allow yourself to grow, although I have to say that it’s important to ensure that they are doable, because otherwise you’ll only end up disappointing yourself, which is the opposite of what we’re trying to achieve here.

Achievement unlocked!

Since I’m also an avid gamer and I love getting achievements (or trophies) in games, it just feels great when I achieve a goal. With this in mind I think I’ve set goals that are achievable. Nobody likes looking back at their goals, or resolutions, only to find out that nothing came of them. That’s why it’s important to set goals that you believe are achievable.

For example; this year I want to use my blog more often, because I think I’ve been slacking off too much. The point is simple; I love blogging and sharing my thoughts on stuff. So, with that in mind, I decided to not only share my book reviews on my blog, but also reviews on other stuff, like video games, LEGO sets, movies, etc. It shouldn’t be hard to write two articles a week, but I did allow myself to go for a little bit less. So I set my goal for one hundred blog posts this year! By the end of the year I hope to have more followers as a result.

If you’re interested in the method I used, click here.

 Ten goals, twelve months, go!

My entire list of goals mainly consists of goals that have something to do with writing, or marketing for my books, but there are a few others, like reading more (20 books this year, is my goal) and finding a new home for my girlfriend Bren, our five cats and myself.

All in all I think I’ve made some wonderful plans for this year and I hope everyone else will have as productive and fun year as I’m planning on having.

To get back to this article’s title. The importance of setting achievable goals, in my opinion, is that it will help you feel good about yourself when you finally reach your goal. There’s nothing more satisfying than looking back and seeing the road you’ve travelled to get where you are now!

So, what are your plans this year? If one of them is to make a change to your life, make sure you do, because sitting still won’t get you anywhere, leaving you with only regrets that you haven’t done anything about it for yet another year. I know I’ve been there!

Happy planning!

-Jeffrey