Ultimate Guide to Goal Setting for Bloggers
I think I have a problem when it comes to goal setting and planning, that’s why I created this Ultimate Guide to Goal Setting for Bloggers.
Nothing gets me more excited than a brand new quarter and figuring out what I am going to focus on and the goals I am going to achieve. (be sure to pin the image below to reference later!)
It isn’t just about getting out my calendar and using a fresh planner, its about making the space to dream and plan out the bigger picture that I have for my life and business.
If you get just as excited as I do, then be sure to download a copy of my Goal Setting for Bloggers Workbook.
When I first started my blogging journey I was a mess.
I didn’t have a plan and I definitely never set goals. I resisted setting goals for a very long time.
I never thought that it was important because I was so afraid that if I set a goal and didn’t hit it that I was a failure.
Find out more about why you need to be setting goals for your blog.
Today, I can attribute a lot of my success to goal setting. Without goal setting I never would have accomplished some of the amazing things I’ve been able to do:
Starting two successful businesses from home
Turning my hobby blog into a six-figure business
Writing and self-publishing a book
Launching several online courses
I could continue on with this list, but I am sure you get the point.
Goal setting has given me the clarity I need to create a concrete path to achieve the goals I want to accomplish.
Each of the things I achieved from above is because I took the time to set goals and follow a strategic action plan to make them happen.
Did you know that a staggering amount of people don’t even set goals, and 92% of people don’t achieve those goals?
I am here to help you be a part of the 8% and not only set your goals but actually accomplish them too.
To do this, I am going to break this Ultimate Guide to Goal Setting for Bloggers into 2 parts:
Part 1 - Setting Goals
Part 2 - Achieving Goals
Part #1 - Setting Goals
Know what you want to achieve
I know this seems so basic, but most bloggers have no idea what they want to accomplish. I used to be a part of that group of bloggers.
If you are like me and started your hobby blog on a whim without ever planning out a single detail then now is the time to do it.
It’s not possible for you to achieve a goal if you have no idea what you actually want. Think about why you started your blog in the first place. What is your motivation behind doing what you do.
If this feels overwhelming and you aren’t sure what you want, then start by listing the things you don’t want.
For example, you might know:
...you don’t want to be working at your 9-5 job
...you don’t want to be living paycheck to paycheck
...you don’t want to be working more than 30 hours per week
When you start listing all the things you don’t want you’ll start to get clarity around the things you do want for your blog and life. This will help you formulate what you want to accomplish.
Here are a few things to consider:
What kind of impact do you want to make?
What do you want to create?
How can you help and be of service?
What do you want to learn?
What are you passionate about?
What is your definition of success?
Don’t worry if it isn’t all clear right now.
Creating your vision takes time and will change often.
The important part is that you step into the role of being a visionary for your blog.
A fun way to help you visualize what you want to accomplish is to create a vision board. Not only will it give you the motivation to keep going, but seeing it every single day will help to make your dreams your reality.
“Create the highest grandest vision possible for your life, because you become what you believe.” - Oprah Winfrey
Dream big and don’t allow other people to influence the goals you want to hit.
Understand your priorities
If you’re not setting goals because you aren’t sure what to do first then now is the time to stop the pattern.
You NEED to prioritize what is the MOST important tasks so that you can focus all of your time and energy on those few things.
It can be hard deciding which goals to focus on in your business when you have a million and one ideas.
Oftentimes, this leads us to work on several different projects at once and never actually completing any of the projects which then leads us to be unsuccessful at hitting our goals.
This can be a never-ending cycle.
Watch this short video I made on how to prioritize your goals:
Create results-oriented goals
What kind of result do you want to achieve with your blog?
Do you want to grow your audience?
Do you want to increase your revenue?
Do you want to hire a VA?
In order to make your goals happen, you need to focus on the result you want to accomplish.
You can’t focus on how many hours you worked. It isn’t about the effort you put in, but the results you are working towards.
When you create a results-oriented goal you can get super specific with want you want to achieve, so that you know exactly what you need to do to make that goal happen.
I recommend that you write it down, and place it in a spot that you can see it every day. This will reaffirm your goal and push you to keep moving forwards.
The important part is getting VERY specific with your goal. You can’t just say I want to increase my revenue -- by how much? in what timeframe?
Your goal needs to be very clear:
“I want to increase my revenue by 10% with my online course by August 15th.”
When you get specific you can then create a plan with action steps to achieve the goal (we’ll talk about this in a minute!), and you can hold yourself accountable by creating milestones along the way.
Plan 90-days a time
Instead of focusing on annual goals, you want to break it down into a 90-day timeframe. When we set goals for an entire we often plan too much which leads to inaction.
90-day goals are long enough to make progress, but short enough to stay focused. When you only plan for 3 months at a time you can create doable steps to accomplish your goal.
When you start thinking about what you want to achieve think of it in terms of the next 90-days. Ask yourself what you want to achieve in the next 90 days? How do you want to feel?
This doesn’t mean you can’t have goals for the year, this just means that you need to prioritize what you want to work on for the next 90 days for your blog.
When you set 90-day goals you can easily adapt to change. We all know how quickly social media changes and other aspects of blogging, so having a shorter timeframe allows you to pivot and adapt to the changes that happen in your industry.
Part #2 - Achieving Goals
Break it down
Once you know what you want to accomplish with your blog in the next 90 days it is time to break it down to ensure you will achieve the goals.
One of the best things you can do to help yourself stay motivated and accountable is to create an action plan.
This will allow you to map out exactly what you will be working on for the next 90 days and get very specific on each individual task you need to complete towards hitting your goal.
If you need help, you can watch this video. It will show you how to I take a goal and break it into individual projects and daily tasks to put onto your calendar.
I recommend that you run your blog in two sprints. This just means that you will be focusing on one high-impact project for the next two weeks.
Doing this allows you to put specific tasks into your planner so that you know exactly what you need to do each time you sit down to work on your blog.
Don’t forget to download a copy of my Goal Setting for Bloggers Workbook, it gives you a template to use to break down your goal.
Put it into your calendar
Now that you have broken down your goals and you have an exact action plan to follow you NEED to put it into your calendar.
This will ensure that you schedule in time every single day to complete these tasks.
I recommend that you do these items FIRST every time you sit down to work.
You already identified that these projects and tasks are the MOST important things in your business to achieve you goal, so now you need to put them in your calendar and daily planner as a priority.
When you fail to plan time to complete the work it will never get done. Trust me, I know from personal experience.
It doesn’t matter if it is a digital planner or a physical planner, do whatever works for you to ensure you make time to do the work. Want to know what I use? Here are all of my top resources and scheduling favorites.
This doesn’t just mean putting in your calendar that you are going to start on a project next week.
You need to mark in the exact days/times that you will dedicate to completing these tasks.
You have to be able to schedule your day to focus on these high-impact projects instead of completing meaningless tasks that aren’t going to help you hit your goals.
Each day, sit down and prioritize your daily schedule so that you don’t run out of time and keep pushing back these important projects.
Track your progress
I love looking back and seeing all of the progress I’ve made with my blog since I started it.
Not only is it an amazing motivator, but it allows me to truly value all of the wins I’ve had up to this point.
Sometimes we tend to ignore all the little wins and start to feel defeated, or feel like we will never hit our goals.
When you track your progress and reflect back on what got you to the point you are at right now, you can start to take inspired action to work towards your goals.
Doing this doesn’t have to be a big project.
Check out this post I wrote with 3 ways to track your progress toward your goals.
Each of the examples are simple for you to do and will allow you to create milestones for big goals you are currently working towards.
Phew!
I know this seems like a lot, but I am here to help you achieve your goals and get results.
Download a copy of my Goal Setting for Bloggers Workbook
Take some time to be a visionary for your blog and go through this process. You will be thrilled to see that you can be a part of the 8% and start smashing your goals.
Comment below and let me know what goals you want to accomplish in the next 90 days using this Ultimate Guide to Goal Setting for Bloggers.