Can you believe we are already in June? Has the year flown by or dragged on for you? I think I am getting to the point in my life where the months are starting to go faster. We decided to do a “half year reflection” this week for us to check in and see where we are with our goals for this year and to give you an opportunity to join us in that.
Did you have big goals this year? How are you doing on them? Did you decide this was the year you would finally stay hydrated and drink more water? How about eating healthier or actually using your gym membership? Or maybe you wanted to spend more time with friends. How are these goals coming along as we are starting June?
Honestly, I thought I had finally set reasonable goals that I would be able to easily meet this year and I am not meeting them all. I tried to make most of my goals more general, like spending more time outside instead of setting a specific goal of how much time I wanted to spend outside each day/week/month. That has definitely helped me feel more accomplished on those goals, but I also have some specific goals that I have not been reaching as well.
I want to encourage you that if you are not where you would like to be on your goals, it is completely fine to just start again. This check in/reflection is making me think of the quote attributed to Norman Vincent Peale that says, “Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you’ll land among the stars.” Even if we aren’t where we thought we would be with our goals (the moon), if we don’t give up, we can still end up somewhere different than where we started (the stars).
When we set goals at the beginning of a new year, we often seem to think that we will become completely different people overnight (especially with those goals to start new daily habits). It takes time to change though. I have often been told that it takes 21 days to form a habit, but do you know how long it takes to fall out of that habit? All it takes is one single day, because then each day after that, there’s an available excuse of “I didn’t do it yesterday so it’s fine to not do it again today.” Trust me, I know how that goes!
Whether you are on track or falling behind on your goals for this year, maybe now is a good time to take a look at some of them and reevaluate. Do you really think you will be able to fit 11 months of going to the gym 3 times a week into 6 months? Or should you try to make it there at least once a week and consider anything more a bonus? Are you actually going to cut out fast food altogether if you have still been getting it every other day? Or should you decide to limit which days you are going to eat it?
What about the goals that you are sticking to and achieving? If you have been finding it easy to drink 2 of your big water bottles per day, do you want to stick to that? Or do you want to try drinking 2 1/2-3 bottles per day? If it’s no big deal sitting down and working on a relaxing hobby once a week, do you want to keep that schedule? Or do you want to try for twice a week?
As we reflect on the first half of this year and look forward to the next half, we can also think about what big things we have done or will do. For example, I got to spend a wonderful week visiting Katelyn and exploring her part of the country. It was such a great time of chatting and laughing as well as getting to see and do fun things I have never seen and done before. I have also had the opportunity to go to 2 ballets this year; both of them were beautiful! Looking forward, I am hoping to plan a fun trip later in the summer and am excited to decide where to go and what to do. I also have a wedding for a good friend coming up, which will be beautiful and exciting.
What kinds of exciting things have you seen or done so far this year? Any fun memories from trips or special events? What about big things coming up? Do you have big summer plans or a family reunion to attend?
However your year is going, whether it’s your best or worst year yet, I hope you have been/are able to reflect with us this week and be excited for the rest of the year coming up next.
Abbi