Goal Setting Ideas: 10 Ways to Make Your Life Better This Year

(Last Updated On: September 12, 2023)

As women over 50, our work life may be behind us, our family life may have changed, our body certainly is evolving with age. When you put all of them together it can create a feeling that it doesn’t really matter what we do because we’re just getting older. Goal setting ideas? Some of you may wonder if you’re past the time in your life for that sort of thing.

I get it.

It can be difficult to set personal development goals when you are unsure of where your life is going or what you want out of it. The changes in our world since 2020 have impacted what we do, where we go, and how we live.

But we’re still living, friend. And just because we’re getting older and life can be difficult doesn’t mean that we stop setting goals for learning, growing, developing as individuals, and becoming all that we can be.

Some of us are by nature goal-setters, others are more fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants personalities, and many are somewhere in between.

The new year offers a fresh start, literally, from the past 365 days, so for many people, it’s the optimal time to start something new and consider some goal ideas and practical tips.

Realistically, though, every day is a fresh opportunity to start again. I don’t get too caught up in the idea of “New Years Resolutions” for that reason, but it is certainly an appropriate time of year to talk about goals, dreams, aspirations, and personal development.

So let’s get going, girlfriend, and set off on a healthy path to healthy habits in 2022!

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Goal Setting Ideas and Tips for a Better, Happier You

Here are 10 ideas to help inspire and motivate you to want to create achievable goals for 2022.

We’ll discuss some specific goal ideas as well, but first, we have to take the step to hold ourselves accountable. The first five ideas and tips revolve around our mindset.

1 | reset your thinking

One of the biggest obstacles in goal setting is letting go of old ways of thinking and resetting our perspective in order to find new motivation. Once we let go of things like:  

“I’m too old for that,” “My body can’t handle that anymore,” “Things are so different than when I was in my 20’s”, etc.

Then we can stop limiting ourselves and set some smart goals that will work for who we are, who we want to become, where we’re at with our bodies, and what is achievable with physical limitations.

Our world has changed dramatically since 2020, and the past year was a tough one for many.

We still have to be smart about what we do, but our bodies are capable of learning things that would surprise us if we let go of self-imposed limitations. We are resilient and tough, friends.

2 | decide what you want to learn, change, or do

It’s a challenge to find our way through the journey of life, but having some sort of map or guide can help shape us into who we want to become, no matter our age. This is an essential when it comes to goal setting ideas.

Goals provide that road map for reaching specific milestones and determining where you are from one year to the next.

I’ve heard from women in midlife who feel like they’ve lost their purpose since retiring. It is a huge change, and when added to life’s other unexpected twists and turns it can feel paralyzing.

But that doesn’t mean you have to stay stuck, my friend. Make a decision to move forward and decide what you want to change, what you need to do, in order to make that happen.

And remember, 2022 is the perfect time to make changes that will be long-lasting and beneficial for your life, even if you can only make small steps towards them, whether they are personal goals, health goals, or for some, career goals .

3 | weekly, monthly, or annual goals

Consider different scenarios and what is best for those areas of your life.

For some, the idea of setting a goal for the entire year is totally overwhelming, but taking a very small step and setting a weekly goal is something that seems attainable. Realistic goals can be challenging but still attainable, and that is what you want to think about.

It really comes down to: YOU. Your personality, your surroundings, your physical health and abilities, your emotional health…all of the parts that make up who you are and how you move through life will impact the type of personal goals you set.

4 | be kind to yourself

You are human, after all. And that is what makes us incredibly special. We can’t just hop out of bed in the morning and say “I’ll be happy today!” Well, we probably could, but it doesn’t last for long if we do nothing to maintain our happiness.

So you’re back on your journey of self-discovery and reaching your full potential, whatever that may be. You’ll read books, get advice from others, you might even hire help if it’s financially feasible for you to do so.

And along the way you’ll fail…you’ll fall back into old habits, but don’t let that discourage you! That is all part of the process.

So, this year, whether you are single or have a spouse/partner, are financially stable or are struggling to make ends meet, have adult kids and grandkids or none at all…whatever your situation is currently should not determine what goals you set for yourself. Creating goals doesn’t mean that life will be easy and without struggle.

So be kind to yourself if you take one step forward and two steps back sometimes…keep moving forward and you will get there.

5 | what makes you happy

What you’re after, my friend, is to set goals for yourself that will make your life fuller, happier, and more rewarding. That may mean taking on a new hobby, reaching out to others for support, it could even just be the decision of starting your day with something positive instead of negative thoughts.

No matter what it is for you, or the areas of your life under consideration, just remember that the most important thing to do with your goal setting is to be happy.

Being true to yourself and living a life you are happy with can be incredibly rewarding, so take the time as the new year begins to think your own life, and what will make your year ahead fulfilling for who YOU are as an individual.

6 | be SMART about it

What is a smart goal? SMART is an acronym for five common characteristics of successful goal setting, so they are pretty important things to consider when determining what your specific short-term, mid-term, and long-term goals should be.

Let’s break down the philosophy of smart goals:

Specific – Your goals should be clearly defined and not left to interpretation.

Measurable – You want to set a goal that you can actually track your progress against. Tracking goals is essential to knowing if you are actually meeting them.

Attainable – Set attainable goals that are possible to accomplish within the time frame you have allotted, but challenging enough for growth and development as an individual.

Relevant – Your goals should be relevant to your life, what you want out of it, and who you are becoming.

Time-bound – Set a time frame for achieving the goal that gives you enough time to reach it but not so much time that you lose motivation or get distracted.

Smart goals really do make sense and are created in a way that will help us be more successful at achieving them.

7 | Areas of life that may benefit from short-term and long-term goals:

Health & Fitness Goal Ideas

Set some realistic fitness goals you’d like to achieve by 2022. Maybe it’s fitting into your favorite jeans again, lose weight, maybe your goal is to build up some muscle, or perhaps it’s learning how to play a new instrument.

Home & Personal Life Goal Ideas

Do you want to be debt free by a certain time? Or maybe just get rid of all of the junk in your house by spring time. Learning something new – there are so many cool things you can learn, take a class or work towards an online certification.

Spirituality Goal Ideas

Take up some of that free time and volunteer at your local food bank, have regular meditation sessions with friends once a week, read some of the classics, spend some time memorizing scripture.

Journaling is another great way to enhance your spirituality and bring order and focus into your life.

8 | Weekly goal ideas:

Health & Fitness

• Spend at least 30 minutes a day doing some sort of physical activity.
• Eat 3 healthy meals and snacks, and prepare meals ahead of time.
• Drink 8 glasses of water daily. I know it seems like a lot but we often underestimate how much we need to drink and the food we actually eat and drink is not as nutritious as what could be.

Home & Personal Life

• Spend at least 2 hours a week working on organizing rooms in your house, or purge one room/area of the junk you don’t need.
• Organize something – filing folders, closets, cabinets, drawers.
• Create new systems for things like paying bills or scrap booking.
• Make time to prioritize self-care and rest.

Learning something new

• sign up for a free online course such as Khan Academy, Coursera, etc.
• Practice your Spanish or Chinese with Duolingo?
• Teach an adult how to read or write?
• E-mail friends and family you haven’t spoken to in a while and catch up on life.
• Journaling – spend at least 5 minutes a day writing down your thoughts, feelings, or ideas. If you feel like you have nothing to say then write about that.

9 | Monthly goal ideas:

Health & Fitness –

• Spend at least one night a week doing something active with friends – yoga, walking, etc.
• Go vegan for a month and follow the rules, or just eat more veggies.
• Commit to a specific workout plan for one month and follow through with it.

Home & Personal Life –

• Get rid of at least 10 things in your house this month – either give it away, sell it, whatever works for you.
• Buy flowers for your home and enjoy them all month long.
• Set up a new organizational system in your house – create zones for different things.

Learning something new –

• Spend at least 30 minutes a week learning about something that interests you, watch some YouTube videos on that topic or read an article or two.
• Sew a dress? Paint a picture?
• Retile your kitchen backsplash? Consider tackling a simple DIY home renovation project that can be accomplished in about 30 days or less.

10 | Yearly goal ideas:

Health & Fitness –

• Train for a 5k race or other type of running event. Before you say that you’re too old, see what my blogging friend Sue has accomplished in her 60s
• Set up a strength training routine and go to the gym 3 times a week.
• Commit to creating a healthy nutrition routine for yourself, for life

Home & Personal Life –

• Make plans to remodel, renovate, or relocate
• Take 6 months off, get away by living in another part of the country or the world (in my dreams, but if you can do it, why not?)
• Share your passion, skill, or hobby by creating a website

Learning something new –

• Train for a yoga teacher certification course
• Learn to play an instrument or other new skill
• Take an online photography course

Resources to Help: Goal Setting Ideas

It’s one thing to read about why we create goals, but actually putting a personal goal into action can give us pause. Why? Well, it means that we have to step out into the unknown.

While I can’t do it for you, girlfriend, I can give you some resources that may help you take that step and move forward in 2022.

• If your goal is related to physical activity and weight management, Mighty Health is a wonderful app and program that encompasses your total physical and emotional well being. I highly recommend giving this program a try if you’ve found it difficult to stay the course with exercise and nutrition.
• If you have a goal of doing some writing or using a bullet journal, here is a helpful post along with the resources to get you going: Bullet Journaling 101
• Take a course to jumpstart your life and determine your goals
• Give yourself the gift of a fresh start for your body, mind, and spirit with this simple email series course, Fresh Start Challenge. It’s the perfect introduction to setting and accomplishing your goals.

Conclusion: 10 Goal Setting Ideas for a Better Year Ahead

The bottom line, my friend, is that any changes you make in your life must come from you. I can’t do it for you, nor can your spouse, partner, friend, or family member.

We can be your cheerleaders, motivators, and encouragers, but the life changes themselves come from within you.

I trust that somewhere in this post are some nuggets of inspiration to help you get started on your journey!

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