We’re Halfway Through the Year. It’s Time for a Check-In!

Well, it is officially summertime, which means that schedules are hectic, the weather is hot, and time seems to go by even faster. It also means that we are halfway through the year.

Do you remember those goals you set last year or the New Year’s resolutions you were determined to keep all year long? How do they look now?

Maybe you have kept your New Year’s resolution. Perhaps you have already crushed a goal or two you set. Or, possibly, you have not been quite as motivated as you once were.

The middle of the year is a great time to stop and evaluate. It gives you an opportunity to reflect on the last six months and see where you have succeeded and where you have struggled. This is NOT a time to be hard on yourself or shame yourself for not doing as well as you anticipated, but to simply take inventory.

Spending this time reflecting will then give you the ability to better plan for the second half of the year. You can reassess, restructure, shoot higher, shoot lower, or change directions all together.

This check-in is also a fabulous time to dream! Let your mind wander. Think about the future. Look at where you want to go before figuring out the steps needed to get there!

Here are a few things to ponder throughout this process:

Remember your goals.

What were the goals you set? Can you remember them? Write them down again.

What did you accomplish?

Celebrating your wins is so important, even if they are small! There truly is no accomplishment too small to celebrate. So, give yourself a pat on the back or even grab a treat!

What did you use to measure your goal?

Did you use an app or good old pen and paper? Looking at numbers and data can be very helpful when tracking progress. Maybe you notice that you didn’t “track” your progress, so moving forward brainstorm some ways you can maintain accountability.

Where did you get off track?

Consistency is difficult! Looking back and seeing where exactly you started to get off track can help you in the future. You might be able to plan better, or find an accountability partner next time. Again, this is not a time to make yourself feel bad for losing momentum, but simply gathering information to better equip yourself for the next time.

Remember your why.

Finding motivation to do the hard work can be VERY difficult. More often than not, we are tempted to stop because we don’t think the result will be worth the work. This is why it is important to know your WHY. What is driving you to meet this goal or accomplish this task? Your WHY can be big or small, as long as it means something to you!

Think about your next 3 years.

Close your eyes and envision yourself 3 years from now. What are you doing? Who are the people around you? Where are you?

Think about your next 10 years.

Now close your eyes and envision yourself 10 years from now. What is different? Where are you? Who is with you? What are you doing?

The goals you have now should directly relate to where you want to be in 3 years and in 10 years. Spending time thinking about the future helps you better fine tune your current goals.

Set new goals.

Now that you have moved through the reflection part it’s time to set some new goals.

SMART Goals.

This acronym stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-Bound. Using this acronym will help you set good goals for the rest of the year! Check out our previous post for more tips on goal setting.

Now you are ready to move forward into the second half of 2021! It will be time to do another check in come January, so feel free to use the same process then.