Set Goals That Nurture Your Mind, Body and Soul

Try taking a more holistic approach to plotting out your objectives

holistic practices include meditation and yoga

 

Whether you realize it or not, we are constantly setting goals for ourselves.

Some are very realistic and attainable, such as deciding on Monday to head to the Upper Peninsula on Friday or having the objective of getting up from your desk and walking for 10 minutes every day.

Others are out-of-the-box, bucket-list targets.

While many people take a materialistic goal-setting path – buying that new car, get a raise – it might benefit us to take a more holistic angle, establishing ambitions that feed the whole person, mind, body and soul.

The first step could be to create a vision board, that you cover with short reminders about the goals you seek to attain, and place it where you see it on a daily basis. According to goalcast.com, a vision board “allows you to exercise your imagination regularly, creating a more vivid vision of your ideal life as you develop your ability that has real, tangible benefits.”

And sure, your vision board could be dotted with objectives like “travel around the world” or “play quarterback for the Detroit Lions,” but those might not be realistic goals. You may want to employ the SMART system of goal setting. Where each goal set, is Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Timely.

Now that you understand the need to have a realistic vision board, how do you determine what your goals should be?

Some examples of mind goals could include:

  • Set reading targets – decide how many pages or how many books you want to read in a given time.
  • Go completely offline once a week and focus on the people you are with.
  • Start a personal journal, which will help give you more clarity of mind.
  • Learn a new language.
  • Take a day for yourself by getting a massage or just getting away by yourself for a few hours.

Once you have filled up the mental goals part of your vision board, move to the section where you will list your physical goals. Remember, make them realistic – running a marathon without any training isn’t going to happen, so if you have a goal of running 26.2 miles, set that goal for 2021 so you can properly train.

There are many achievable and measurable goals that will feed your body. Among them:

  • Stop drinking pop and sugary drinks, start drinking lots of water.
  • Go for a walk every night after dinner.
  • Eat more vegetables.
  • Establish better sleep habits.
  • Participate in recreational sports.

Finally, we can work on the soul segment of the vision board. Goals for the soul can be spiritual or something that sustains your soul, which will give you a sense of peace and joy once you complete it, such as:

  • Reading scripture more often.
  • If you are new to meditation you can get tips at zenhabits.net/meditation-guide/.
  • Do volunteer work with a local nonprofit.
  • Organize your closet and give clothes you no longer wear to a charity.

Whatever goals you choose, make them personal and attainable that apply to things you enjoy.

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