Happy New Year!
Can you believe it's 2024?
I'm guessing in some ways it feels like 2023 just flew by and it's hard to believe it's over and a new year is already beginning, while at the same time, in some ways it felt like this year dragged on because things didn't go like you'd planned or expected. I know that's how 2023 has felt for me and I think for a lot of other people.
Here are some things I like about the beginning of each new year:
- A New beginning.
- Kind of a reset.
- A time to look ahead.
- A new year that has so many possibilities in it.
- A time to dream again.
- A time to plan again.
- A time to hope again.
Yes, I know. You've made plans other years, and they haven't always come to pass. Things didn't happen like you expected. (I'm talking about plans you made, not new year's resolutions.)
You had big dreams, and I mean BIG dreams. You were sure things were going to happen a certain way and then other things happened that were completely out of your control. And that dream, the one you were so sure about, the one that you were so excited about, that one that you were hanging onto, it came crashing down, and behind it was reality. A reality that you didn't want. A reality that you didn't see coming. A reality that you didn't expect. And now it's hard to dream again. It's scary to dream again. You don't want to be disappointed again.
I get it. That's been my life for the last few years. But with God's strength I'm going to put one foot in front of the other to move forward. One little step at a time, while trusting and believing that God has good plans that I can't even imagine yet.
Jeremiah 29: 11-13 (NIV) "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart."
God tells us that He has plans for us. So as the new year begins I'm going to encourage you to seek the Lord and ask Him to show you what His good plans for you are. I'm also seeking God to discover the plans He has for me.
For now, or at least until God shows me the next plan He has for me, I'm taking small steps in the direction He has already directed me in. With that in mind on Sunday I created a monthly goal planner/overview sheet using Excel software.
Years ago I started using Happy Planners as my planner for the year. I really like them because you're not stuck to just whatever pages were created by the manufacturer, but instead you can add pages of wherever you want and/or need to make the planner uniquely you both in style and purpose.
So as I started working on my planner (adding pretty stickers, writing in ongoing activities; work, Bible studies, etc.) I realized that there were some additional pages I wanted this year that I haven't used/created in the past. Specifically a 1 page Monthly planner. Not the monthly calendar overview (although that's important, too). I wanted a simple style that was only one page long, that would be easy to glance at thought the month to stay focused on what needed to get done to reach my goals. I also wanted it to be fun and colorful. I love colors, so I wanted my happy planner to be colorful, too! So it took me a few hours, but I designed a 1 page Monthly Goal Overview planner! It will go in my happy planner at the beginning of the month of January!
I had 6 categories of "goal" (not all are really goal, but rather "to do's"), so I made this planner page to have 6 categories! Each category looks like a colored "mini notebook"! Basically it's a small colored box with lines in which to write your goals. On the left side of each "notebook" is the "margin" line, which created little boxes beside each of the goals, so that as you finish off a goal you can check it off! The first 4 "mini notebooks" each have 15 lines available. The last 2 "mini notebooks" have 10 lines available on each one.
Because it's an excel sheet, each line of the notebook is editable, so I was able to type in what I wanted under each goal, and then print it off to put in my planner.
Since I use the Classic size Happy Planner, I needed to resize the print to 84% so that it will fit nicely in my planner. It's really simple to do this. When you have everything filled in on the sheet, click "file", then scroll down to "Print". When the print page comes up, look for the option to size the print. Adjust it to 84% and then hit the print button! Once it's printed off, you will need to cut off some of the right side and bottom of the paper. To make sure I cut off the edges to the correct size, I use another planner sheet. I lay it on top of the printed paper and using a pen (or pencil) make a few small dots along the edge so I'll know where to cut it at!
After that I used my Happy Planner hole puncher to punch the holes in the left side and put it in my planner at the beginning of the month. I attached a tab to the page, so it will be easy to find and flip back to anytime I want to review the page. I then added some pretty and colorful stickers around the edges to make it more festive! And drum roll, please... a pretty planner page where my monthly goals are organized in one place!
As I was finishing up typing out my goals, I realized that other people might like this cute and colorful planner sheet, too. So after a little more work, I listed it in my etsy store! Here's the Monthly Goal planner! I'm really excited about this planner sheet, and my hope is that you, too, will enjoy it.
The 6 categories I used in my planner are: Personal Goals, Relationship with God, Sewing/Crocheting Goals, Financial Goals, Blogging Goals, and Cleaning Goals. But you can use whatever goals work for your plans for the month. The digital download excel planner you receive will not have my categories listed. Just type in your desired categories on the first line of each "notebook" and you'll be ready to go! And of course, you can even change the categories from month to month if your needs change!
I hope you have fun getting your Happy Planner (or whatever planner you like to use) setup and ready for this new year. Dream Big! We serve a big God who has good plans for each of us!
Happy New Year, 2024!
No comments:
Post a Comment