Do Your 2022 Goals Reflect Your Values?

by Beth K. Vogt @BethVogt
My husband Rob and I went to Hawaii for the first time in December. He attended a medical conference, and I went along, well, for Hawaii. And for time with wonderful husband, too, of course.
During the five days of Rob’s conference, I had something I rarely experience: time to myself.
Rob left for his workshops each morning by 7:30. Most days, he finished by 12:30. That means I had five hours alone every day. Five days x Five hours = 25 hours to myself. 
Wow.
My original intention was to write, write, write during all those glorious hours.
That’s not what happened.
The 25 hours were about giving myself time to think. 
The 25 hours were about giving myself time to listen to God.
Each morning I watched one or two brief videos to jumpstart my focus for the day. Then I thought. I prayed. Thought and prayed some more. 
The biggest change that occurred during my time in Hawaii? 
I took the time to ask myself what my life values were. I narrowed my values down to faith, relationships, health, and identity.
And now, because it is a new year, we get to the word “goals.”
You’ve probably heard about how important it is to make SMART goals:Specific Measurable AchievableRelevantTime-BoundToward the end of the week, when I did lay down some concrete goals for the first three months of 2022, I didn’t aim for a single SMART goal. No. Instead, each goal I wrote down was based on one of my values.
During those 25 hours of uninterrupted prayer and thought, one thing became clear: As I selected goals based on my life values of faith, relationships, health, and identity, my objectives were more meaningful. I was more committed to each decision because what I’m spending my time and efforts on are linked to my core beliefs.
What about you? Consider the goals you’ve set for yourself this year. Do they reflect your life values?
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Beth K. Vogt believes God’s best often waits behind the doors marked “Never.” Having authored nine contemporary romance novels and novellas, The Best We’ve Been, the final book in Beth’s Thatcher Sisters Series with Tyndale House Publishers, releasers May 2020. Other books in the women’s fiction series include Things I Never Told You, which won the 2019 AWSA Award for Contemporary Novel of the Year, and Moments We Forget. Beth is a 2016 Christy Award winner, a 2016 ACFW Carol Award winner, and a 2015 RITA® finalist. An established magazine writer and former editor of the leadership magazine for MOPS International, Beth blogs for Learn How to Write a Novel and The Write Conversation and also enjoys speaking to writers group and mentoring other writers. Visit Beth at bethvogt.com.