Journalise Guide: Bucket List and Goals

Use the Bucket and Goal lists to help you achieve your objectives and succeed in your personal and professional life. These lists are not something that you should complete and then forget. Make sure that you continue to review and refine these lists as you progress, to check on your progress and to help drive your behaviour and daily goals.

Bucket List

A bucket list is a list of experiences, achievements, or goals that you want to accomplish during your lifetime. It would typically include things that you may have always wanted to do but may not have had the opportunity to pursue yet. Some examples of items that may be on a bucket list include travelling to a specific destination, learning a new language, running a marathon, or even writing a book.

The purpose of your bucket list is to inspire and motivate you to make the most of your life and pursue your passions and interests. By creating a list of goals and experiences that you want to achieve, you can then prioritise what’s important to you and work towards accomplishing those goals. It can be a powerful tool for personal growth and self-discovery, as it encourages you to step outside your comfort zone and try new things. Ultimately, a bucket list is a way to create a roadmap for your life, guiding you towards a more fulfilling and satisfying existence.

Goals List

A goals list is similar to a bucket list in that it is a list of objectives or outcomes that an individual wants to achieve. However, a goals list is typically more specific and focused on short-term or long-term achievements that you want to accomplish. A goals list may include things such as earning a degree, landing a specific job, buying a house, or saving a certain amount of money.

While a bucket list may include some goals, it is often more focused on experiences and personal growth, rather than specific achievements. A bucket list may include items such as visiting a particular country or learning to play an instrument, which are not necessarily specific goals but rather experiences that you desire. A bucket list is often more open-ended and can be revisited and revised over time as priorities and interests change.

Overall, a goals list is typically more focused on achieving specific outcomes or milestones, while a bucket list is more focused on personal growth, exploration, and creating meaningful experiences. Both are useful tools for setting priorities and achieving personal fulfilment, depending on your individual needs and aspirations.

SMART Goals

Using SMART goals can help you clarify your objectives and develop a clear roadmap for achieving them. This framework is designed to help you identify the most important aspects of your goal and create a plan that is tailored to your needs. SMART goals are also useful for monitoring your progress, making adjustments as needed, and holding yourself accountable for achieving your objectives.

The SMART acronym stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. Each of these elements is essential for creating effective goals that can help you stay focused, track your progress, and achieve your objectives.

To create SMART goals, you need to follow these steps:

1. Be specific about what you want to achieve. This means defining your goal in clear and concise terms. You need to be clear on what you are trying to achieve.

1. Make your goal measurable. You should be able to track your progress and determine whether you’re on track to achieving your goal. A specific target ensures you know what to aim for, for example, “Drink less caffeine” is too generic and you have no way of determining whether you achieve it or not, versus “Drink max 2 caffeine drinks per day” which has a specific metric to determine success.

1. Ensure your goal is achievable. Consider whether your goal is realistic given your current resources, skills, and constraints. If you make the goal too difficult to achieve you will only set yourself up to fail and quickly give up, likewise, don’t make it too easy – it does need to stretch you.

1. Make sure your goal is relevant to your overall objectives. It should be aligned with your values, interests, and long-term plans.

1. Set a time-bound deadline for achieving your goal. This will help you stay motivated and focused on making progress towards your objective. It can help to put smaller milestones in place to help you pace your journey to the overall goal and give yourself a sense of achievement as you progress. It can also be helpful to allocate treats or awards to each of those milestones to incentivise yourself to get there.

By following these steps, you can create effective SMART goals that can help you achieve your objectives and succeed in your personal and professional life.

You may want to add your goals and milestones to the monthly calendar trackers in your journal so you can quickly and easily view what you are aiming for, and check on your progress.