Sticking to Your Family Goals

What’s your family goal this year? Whether you’re aiming to spend more time together, to be more active as a family, or to schedule one on one time with each other, it’s great to have an intent that the whole family can work towards. Only downside: it’s easier said than done. Navigating the hurdles of sticking to an individual goal can be hard enough. Trying to stick to goals as a family with three, four, five or more only magnifies those challenges.

The idea of working towards a goal can feel enticing, exhilarating, and exciting at first – until, it's not. Once the thrill is gone, then you’re faced with the biggest hurdle: sticking to it. Life gets in the way and other to-do’s seem more important. Just because you’re busy doesn’t mean that you have to give up on your goal! Here are few tips to help your family stay on track and hold each other accountable…

Prioritize it.
There will always be a more important task to do than working toward your goal. If you don’t mindfully and intentionally set the time to work on it, it’s almost guaranteed that it will quickly fall to the bottom of your to-do list. There was a reason that you all decided on this goal as a family. Continue to constantly remind yourself about that reason so that prioritizing it becomes easier.

Talk about it.
Your conversation kicking off the goal should not be the only time that you discuss it as a family. Purposefully weave your family’s goal into conversations so it remains at the forefront of everyone’s minds. For example, let’s say your goal is to spend at least 2 hours a week as a family technology-free. When you read an interesting article about technology and mental health, you could share it with your spouse and say something like “I am so excited to see the positive impact that family goal of being tech-free will have on our relationships.” Or when you see your kids choosing to play a board game together instead of a video game, you could say “That’s a great choice!” And afterwards, you could ask them, “How did it feel to have fun without looking at your screens?” There are many ways to integrate your goal into everyday conversation.

Celebrate progress.
Progress isn’t always huge accomplishments. Even baby steps are still steps in the right direction! As you and your family make progress, celebrate it. Acknowledge your family when they’re doing something right. Notice their efforts and give them praise. Not to mention, give yourself a pat on the back too! Being the family cheerleader and your own cheerleader can help you all stay motivated.

Sticking to a goal isn’t easy. A family goal is even more challenging, and in turn, even more rewarding. Working on a goal as a family is a great way to strengthen relationships and communication. There is so much to learn about yourself and your loved ones during the process. By making your goal a priority, talking about it on a regular basis, and celebrating even the smallest wins, you can stick to your family goal. And eventually, with determination and persistence, you can see this through!