A few days before the New Year, we were having supper with my husband’s family and my father-in-law suggested we share some of our goals for 2020. We went around the room and everyone shared a few goals they had for the new year.

I was reluctant to share.

Though I’m not big on New Year’s Resolutions (you can read more about my take on that here), I love setting goals. I keep a list of goals and I look back at them to see how I can better prioritize so I’m making the most of my time. 

Many of my goals have to do with my writing. I try to keep my goals to things under my control. As much as I’d love to find a literary agent this year, that’s not a great goal to put down because it’s out of my control. However, I can make it a goal to research literary agents and query agents who are interested in the kind of writing I do. I like to put numbers to my goals… such as reading a certain number of books on writing craft, or submitting a certain number of manuscripts to children’s magazines.

But my goals aren’t typically something I share. I hold them close. I rarely show them to anyone.

Why? Maybe I’m afraid people will have different ideas of how I should be spending my time. Maybe I just like to keep them to myself. Or maybe I’m afraid of having that level of accountability.

I’m not sure. But regardless, as we went around the room and talking about some of our ambitions for the new year, I realized the value in sharing goals. Yes, it brings a new level of accountability. But it’s more than that. 

There’s something in verbalizing the directions you want to take with your life and your time. Putting words to goals makes them seem more real. More doable. More concrete. At least, that’s the way it feels for me, as someone who doesn’t often share personal things.

Our goals don’t have to be deeply private. Now, I don’t think we have to post them on social media and share them with the whole world (not that there’s anything wrong with that if that helps you pursue your goals). I just think it doesn’t hurt to share them with someone. Even if that only means talking about goals with the person you know and trust the most. 

One of my goals for this year is to be more open with my goals. I want to share them, especially with my husband. I want to be transparent with my priorities and ambitions, because I like the way talking about them makes them feel more real.

So let’s share our goals this year. Let’s talk about the things that matter to us instead of hiding them away where no one else can see them. Let’s make our goals a part of our reality.

And never forget… you are onederfully created.

Love,
Becca