I know what you are thinking, but Maria, I have to get through the holidays before I think about the New Year! Right? Wrong.

We are in the last 60 days of the year. It is still possible to live the life you want in these sixty days. To enjoy your family during this magical time of year. Take a look at last month’s blog post about keeping your sanity during the holidays to keep yourself in check (mentally, physically and financially) as we end out the year.


Smart Strategies to Prepare for 2019 - mariadismondy.com


I have a plan for setting goals as a family as well, download those here.

#1 Plan a date with yourself. Whether it is for a long, brisk (brisk here in Michigan) walk or a cup of coffee at a local coffee shop, make time to sit and reflect on the following questions.
*In the follow areas of life-Personal, Relationships, Family, and Work-What is working? What is not? Start brainstorming what needs to change in order to see progress, happiness and overall better quality of life. If the problems came up easily but you are unable to discover a possible solution, reach out to your partner or a close friend. This should be a time to brainstorm. As we get closer to the new year, you can translate these initial thoughts into your Quarter One goals. I like to take things one quarter, month, week and day at a time. Anything longer term than that is overwhelming. I will have two large PUSH goals for the year and all of my quarterly goals for work will be actions that help me get closer to that PUSH (very big and scary) goal.

#2 Evaluate Your System. Do you use a calendar? Is it digital or old school paper (like I use!)? Now is the time to order your 2019 planner and start mapping out the year. I have a friend who went from working to staying home with her children. She was feeling overwhelmed with life and I suggested her writing out her daily lists. She said she had gotten rid of a planner when she left the corporate world but guess what—raising children is a job too! It requires organizing, planning, and many to-do lists!

#3 Accountability. How will you hold yourself accountable for what you want to accomplish in the new year? Having an accountability partner can really help those of us who are not self motivated. A friend who you can hop on the phone with for an hour once a month to share goals and someone who you can both check in with each other every week.

Don’t forget, making a plan with your children can be quite powerful. Download my free Vision Board Tutorial here.


Join our private Facebook Group: Empowering Kids with Character. You don’t want to miss the amazing and awesome tips and tricks that is being shared by parents and educators alike!