How to Set Personal Development Goals Simplified

I have a couple questions for you, do you ever set personal goals? Do you keep them? When you stop to write down your business goals do you include your personal development goals?

For work at home solopreneurs I know how easy it is easy to put yourself last.

Business goals.
Professional Development goals.
Personal goals.

Setting goals is a goal itself!

As a work at home woman and a mom I understand HOW MUCH you have on your plate.

There is so much to accomplish in just 24 hours each day, right?

And these goals don’t even address taking care of your family and your home.

By following a couple steps you can set yourself up to succeed and achieve your personal development goals.

You can achieve your personal goals the same as you achieve your work and career goals.

Your Personal Goals Are Your Business Goals

When you work from home your business and career can only be strong and healthy when you are.

YOU are your business!

Your business can only grow if you grow.

I learned an important lesson early in my career and it has been one of the most valuable pieces of business advice I have ever received.

A great boss once told me always be loyal to yourself first. No matter what.

Always put yourself first at work and in business because everyone else is putting themselves first.

It took me a long time to fully understand and implement what he was telling me.

I am sharing his wisdom with you so you will learn from it too.

Always put yourself first in business. Even and especially when the business is yours!

Goal Setting for Solopreneurs

Let’s take a second to talk about goal setting.

I’m a recovering goal setting rebel. I never understood how setting yearly goals was an effective way to plan for success.

How could I possibly know in January what was going to happen in May or October?

Does this sound familiar? Do you also find annual goal planning to be unrealistic and aggravating?

As a business owner, I realized I did needed some sort of goal planning system.

After trying a couple things, including a an enormous planner book with a cheerful cover that still sits empty, I stumbled into quarterly goal planning.

I discovered that I was able to visualize my projects in three month increments .And I felt comfortable giving each of the three month it’s own achievable goal.

By following a quarterly planning formula, my goals finally felt manageable and realistic while still challenging.

And then I found out I wasn’t the only one using this system!

I read the The 12 Week Year: Get More Done in 12 Weeks than Others Do in 12 Months by Brain Moran and it brought me great clarity.

I finally understood why I had spent years objecting to annual goal planning in a traditional work environment and why planning in three month increments works so well.

It turns out I’m not unable to plan and accomplish goals and neither are you!

One of the concepts in the 12 Week Year, that stood out to me, is the focus on personal goals. The time blocking system in the book even includes a three-hour personal time block each week.

While I don’t use the time blocking formula it does validate the importance of setting aside time to accomplish personal development goals.

How to Set Personal Development Goals for Work at Home Solopreneurs

If personal development goal setting is new for you an easy place to start is by listening to one of the books on your Audible wish list.

I’m not the only one with an Audible wish list long enough for a cross country road trip, right? Take a look at the books on your list, or check out my list, and choose one that relates to a goal you are working on now.

If you are like me, actually choosing which book to start reading might be what’s holding you back. If that’s the case consider joining a book club like the Work at Home Book Club that I host on Facebook (click here to join).

The real trick to actually following through on your personal development goal is to create an Action Plan with tactics.

Your Action Plan tactic might be to read 50 pages or listen to a quarter of a book each week for one month, for example.

Maybe books aren’t your thing and your personal goal is to lose weight (mine is ALWAYS to get in better shape!)

A tactic could be to drink a specific amount of water each day, walk for at least 30 minutes two times a week or do three YouTube exercise or yoga videos a week for a month.

And then there is my favorite personal development goal. Get your nails done or a haircut each month.

The health of your business is tied to you and your self-confidence. Who doesn’t have more confidence when they take care of themselves?

If you have been putting off taking care of or yourself your personal development goal action plan tactics could include:

1. Make an appointment for a mani/pedi
2. Block the time off on your calendar for a mani/pedi
3. Show up to the mani/pedi appointment.

Yes, I’m serious, this really counts as a personal development goal!

Conclusion

When you work at home it’s important to remember the reasons why you choose to work from home. The freedom and flexibility to control your life and career path.

Setting personal development goals for work at home solopreneurs is the best way to make sure you are taking advantage of that freedom and flexibility – along with taking care of yourself.

It’s important to remember that you are your business!

Accomplishing your personal development goals will give you enthusiasm and confidence to achieve your business goals too!

Additional Posts You Might Like:

Quarterly Goal Planning Worksheet Simplified

Discover The Formula for Setting SMART Business Goals Today

Rachel Hollis Takes on The Lie: I’ll Start Tomorrow

What I Learned My First Year Working from Home