It is that time of year again. We have just launched ourselves into a new 12-month cycle which, for most people, typically unfolds like a roller coaster ride; a trip that consists of a track that rises in designed patterns, often with one or more inversions (vertical loops anyone?) that briefly turn us upside down.

3 Essential Ingredients for your best year @ Create Hype | Yearly Calendar from Touies Design

 A typical annual roller coaster ride goes like this …

:: January

We have left behind all that was good and bad last year and are filled with hope and anticipation of what the new year will bring to us. We are high on riding the wave of our big dreams and the promise that this will be the year we achieve them.

:: February to June

These are the deciding months that, for me, set the tone for the rest of the year. After the initial high of the first month, you will encounter internal and external roadblocks (fear and other people’s resistance, for example) and it is up to you to decide how you deal with them this time around (because let’s face it, it’s not the first time you’ve been tested like this in your life). This is challenging terrain that can make or break your year.

:: July to August

“What? It is July already?” Depending on how you have navigated the previous five months, you will either experience another high while celebrating small and big successes or you will have that stark sense of time running away from you with your dreams well out of reach. If it is the latter for you, these two months, which are usually the slowest in terms of business growth, will put a big dent in your confidence and grind away at those last glimmers of hope.

:: September to November

September always feels like another chance. It is the month where we re-evaluate the current year and look for new opportunities to either build on past successes or to finally swing things around to work in our favour. It feels like we’re approaching the finish line and we want to give all we have to make this year count.

:: December

This is the busiest month of the whole year and, depending on how everything went for you thus far, you will either feel a sense of accomplishment or nagging disappointment—in addition to the promise of the new year ahead.

But while you are restrained in a real-live roller coaster car and have to sit through each turn and loop until the end of the track, the metaphorical roller coaster ride that is the year ahead allows you to shape the track as you go along. What’s guiding you on this journey is a clear understanding of your vision, which then shapes your short-term and long-term goals.

Your vision provides the focus; it is your idea of your destination. 

Ask yourself:

  • Where am I heading?
  • What does it look like there
  • What am I going to do there
  • Who is there?
  • How do I spend my time there?
  • How will it feel once I get there

Visualize and describe “there” with as much detail as you can. The more vivid your idea of “there” is, the more it will fire you up to get going—now. So don’t be afraid to whip out the coloring pens and go wild drawing over the lines. Be bold and courageous—and know that you cannot fail there. Failure is the only thing that is impossible in your personal vision.

Once you emerge from the sea of excitement and bliss that your vision has laid out in front of you, make sure you come back for regular skinny dips to refresh your senses when the ride gets rocky. 

Good ways to do that is scheduling regular vision dates—a couple of hours every month that give you a taste of what your vision is like (e.g. if your vision includes regular massages in your self-care program, be sure to book a luxurious massage for your vision date).

Your goals inspire you to do the work; they are specific and measurable.

There are three rules that make goals so much more effective. First, they need to be written in present tense (even if it’s a long-term goal). Second, they have to be specific (because details matter). Third, they need to have a due date (because deadlines are motivating).

A lofty goal is looks like this:

I will increase my list.

A well-phrased goal is this:

I add 1000 newsletter subscribers by March 2014.

With goals, it helps to think in categories (e.g. business, health, personal) and various timeframes. Craft very specific 1-year, 5-year and 10-year goals for each category, written in the present tense, and schedule them. Make sure you set up regular reminders and check-in dates, which will be your guiding lights on the journey ahead.

So if you want to see greater successes this year, take a few moments to understand how a 12-month cycle usually unfolds for you—and then propel yourself out of your lows with vision dates and power through your highs by getting stuff done and ticking off your goals.

Help others dream and share a condensed version of your vision in the comments below.

[Image via Touies Design on Etsy!]