Are you trying to learn how to set goals for the summer, but find yourself forgetting them or not having enough time? Sometimes when we finish the school year, we just want to sit back and relax for the whole summer season. While it’s good to take a break and rest now and then, it is important to set some goals for the summer. This will help you accomplish some of the things you have been neglecting, or that are hard to get done during the school year.
I will share some of my favorite tips for setting goals for the summer that will help you accomplish the things you often don’t do well in the busier seasons.
How do you set summer goals?
1. Spiritual growth
Summer is a great time to focus on growing spiritually and spending more time with God and His Word. By setting aside time for prayer and Bible reading, you will find that God gives you clear direction and wisdom for each day.
Taking time to train your kids in character during the summer is a great way to keep them growing spiritually, as well. Starting the day together studying God’s Word and learning how to develop Godly character shows your kids the importance of keeping God and His Word a daily priority.
2. Self-renewal
As moms, it is easy to focus on meeting the needs of our family while forgetting to refill our own cup. Focusing on self-renewal keeps you from burnout and fatigue, which often leads to a loss of joy. Self-care can be exercise, pursuing hobbies, spending time with another mom who encourages you, reading, or whatever it is you enjoy doing and find refreshing.
3. Recreation/fun with family
Make it a priority to create memories with your family. Plan fun outings, game nights, baking together, or having friends over to play kickball in the backyard with the kids. These activities and the time spent together add joy to the summer months, you will look back on and smile. It also creates a stronger bond with your kids, strengthening the relationships.
4. Housework
Summer is the perfect time for taking care of some of those projects in the home that you have been putting off. Set goals that are realistic for organizing and deep cleaning. Another great summer idea is joining me for a 30-day decluttering challenge. Clearing clutter makes for less stress and a more peaceful environment in your home.
5. Business responsibilities
If you have a home business or a part-time job, summer is a good time to work on completing some of your projects, planning ahead, and doing what you need to in order to keep your business on track.
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What are some good goals to set for the summer?
The goals you set for your summer will be personal, and everyone’s goals will look different, even within your own family. Once you have your broad goals like we discussed above, you’ll want to write down more specific things you’ll want to accomplish in each of those areas.
For example, from my broad goals, I broke them down to:
- Spiritual growth: What is a good summer reading goal? Daily time spent reading God’s Word and in prayer; read a couple of inspirational books.
- Self-renewal: work on better nutrition and regular exercise.
- Recreation/fun with family: I planned one activity a week to focus on quality time with those I love.
- Housework: de-clutter, then deep clean.
- Business responsibilities: Write new blog posts, review new books, send out speaker packs, answer emails, etc.
What are personal goals?
The personal goals part of this method means you take your goals from step two above and make them actionable steps that can bring you step-by-step closer to reaching your broad summer goals.
This final goal list is much more detailed and broken down into parts. By doing it this way, nothing will be too overwhelming. (For example, I will de-clutter and deep clean one room a week.)
To ensure that I actually accomplish these goals, on the weekend, I set up the specific plans in each area and break them down by day.
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- Quiet time with God; 15 minutes of inspirational reading (Every day)
- Exercise, get to bed on time, take vitamins (Every day)
- Play game with family; spend time in pool with kids; date with husband (varies by day of week)
- Declutter – bedroom dressers; bedroom closet; boxes under a bed; (varies by day)
- Fill orders; Spend 15 minutes reading one of the review books; 15 minutes answering emails
How can I fully enjoy summer?
Breaking things down like this helps me to focus, and at the same time, not be overwhelmed. Rather than put down ‘clean the entire kitchen,’ I list each job for the kitchen (clean silverware drawers, organize medicine cupboard, clean/organize/pantry, clean/organize cupboards with dishes, etc)
Then I choose a couple of those things and put them on the list for the day.
Each evening, I make a master list for the next day. I may not always get to everything, but having attainable goals that are broken up for me makes it much more likely that I will get many of the things done each day, and DEFINITELY more than if I didn’t list the goals I wanted to accomplish.
I want to make this summer count and spend time on the priorities that God has placed on my heart. That requires planning. “To fail to plan is to plan to fail.”
What are your goals for this summer? Do you have a plan to reach those goals? I’d love to hear what you are working on this summer, and how you are going about making those plans happen!
Why not plan for a successful summer with our intentional summer challenge?
More Summer Encouragement:
