Simple Printable Goal Planner, Helpful Goal Setting Worksheets
Inside: Make your big goals a reality even if you’ve struggled in the past. All you need is a plan to make it work. This printable goal planner helps you make that plan so you can finally achieve your goals. Learn how these printable goal setting worksheets can help you.
Even if this year hasn’t started out well for you, you can take control now and make this year an exceptional year for you.
Making an action plan is the best way to reach your own goals, your big goals during this new year with a printable goal planner. Don’t put your goals off until next year, achieve them now.
A printable goal planner is a great resource for setting goals in different areas of your life. Like your personal goals, career goals, business goals, even simple goals like cleaning the kitchen.
But first, let’s talk about why to set goals.
Why Set Goals?
I used to think setting goals was just something people did who had too much time on their hands. I mean, why stop and set goals? When you could just be working on them.
But over the years, I’ve realized that goal planning can really help you focus in on what you want to achieve and give you the direction and motivation for achieving your goals.
Goals done right, we’ll talk about how to set good goals later, are achievable.
The best part of goal setting is the rush of excitement when you achieve a goal. It’s wonderful.
And you have a much better chance of achieving your goals when you have a plan.
Why is Goal Planning Important?
Goal planning is important because without a plan, it’s hard to achieve your goals.
When you set a goal, you are triggering a change in your behavior. Planning your goals helps to align your focus. It gives you a plan to follow to achieve that goal.
Because a goal without a plan is just a dream. We can think and think about our goals, but never work on them because we don’t have a plan.
When you have a way to measure your progress, it is motivating. That motivation keeps you going on the clear path you’ve laid out until you achieve your goal.
If you don’t measure your progress, you can manage it. You stay stagnate and another year goes by with no progress made. Don’t let that be you this year!
Let’s get into goal setting. You’ll have the best chance of reaching your goal if you know how to set good goals.
How to Set Good Goals
If you’ve never really done goal setting, you might think, what is a good goal? How do I set good goals? That is exactly what I used to think.
When setting goals, you want to use the SMART system. Makes you feel smarter already, doesn’t it?!
What are the 5 goal setting steps? Keep on reading to find out.
If you want to set smart goals, you’ll want to use these 5 goal setting steps.
They are…
1. Specific
Keep your goals very specific instead of saying I want to get healthy. Try being more specific like, I want to only eat dessert one time a week. Or I want to walk 10,000 steps a day.
2. Measured
Make sure you have a way to measure your goals. Like our example above of a goal of 10,000 steps a day, you have an actual number of steps you want to reach. It’s measured.
A more vague answer would be I want to walk some each day.
3. Attainable
You also want to make sure your goal is attainable. This means you have the resources to achieve it. You want your goals to be challenging, but also possible.
A goal to lose 100 pounds is an achievable goal, a goal to lose 100 pounds in one month isn’t achievable.
Make sure your goals are achievable goals with hard work.
4. Relevant/Realistic
This step is the two r’s. You want it to be realistic, something you can actually achieve with hard work like we talked about in the attainable section.
But you also want the goal to be relevant to your life. You want to have a compelling reason for your goals.
If your goal is to become healthier, why is this important? Is it so you can live to a ripe old age to see your kids and grandkids grow up? Is it so you can live an active life your whole life?
Knowing your why behind your motivation for achieving your goal can help keep pushing you through the hard times. Don’t underestimate this step as it really can make or break your goal progress and longevity.
I know it’s easy to just overlook this step, but in some ways, this is the most important step. So take the time to really name why you want to achieve this goal.
5. Time-Based
You want to have a deadline for your goal. You don’t want to just set a goal for sometime this year. You need an actual date to complete it by.
In fact, as you plan, you’ll have due dates for many small steps in your goals. We’ll talk more about that later.
Don’t Fear a Due Date…
I have to tell you this is the hardest part of goal planning for me.
I struggle with making my goals time based. Because I beat myself up when I don’t meet a goal in the time frame I laid out. If you are like me, this is something you need to be aware of but not afraid of.
You’ll need to give yourself grace if you don’t hit your goal within your initial time frame and just extend it out as needed. Then work twice as hard to meet the new deadline you set.
This is an important step to keep you moving forward on your goals don’t skip it.
If you need a worksheet to help you plan smart goals, there is a printable smart goals template inside the Printable Goal Planner.
Plus a sheet to help you brainstorm and get all those ideas for goals out of your head and onto paper. More about that next.
Now you know all about how to set goals. Let’s talk about how to record and track your goals for the best success. Because if you don’t measure your goals, you can track and make progress on them.
Goal Planner Templates
Grab these goal setting templates to help you plan your goals. Included is a yearly goal planner, monthly goal planner, weekly goal planner and more. Use the sheets to achieve all your life goals.
Get the full Printable Goal Planner in the Shop!
Make Your Action Steps to Achieve your Specific Goals
Once you have your goals you want to achieve, it’s time to make your goal plan.
Because writing what you want to achieve isn’t enough, you’re going to need a plan to make all of those wonderful changes you want to make.
A printable goal planner is perfect for this process.
Writing your goals in black and white or pretty purple if you prefer helps you concrete your plan.
It gives you a way to track your progress to help keep you motivated.
Having your goals written in a planner also gives you a tangible way to review your goals regularly. To keep you on track and moving through the steps to achieve those big long-term goals.
You can just plan your goals on sheets of lined paper. That’s simple to do. But having a printable goal planner is easier. The pages are already arranged to help you focus on the most important areas of your goal.
What’s the best goal planner for goal setting?
I’m glad you asked. It’s one that is simple and easy to use. Doesn’t use too much ink, but is still pretty. Gives you lots of room to record your goals. But doesn’t have a bunch of busywork worksheets. Just what you need to plan, track, and achieve your goals.
I have the perfect printable goal planner for you. It’s the one I use, you can see it here.
Now let’s go over what goal worksheets you’ll need and how to use them to make a plan and track progress on your goals.
How to Use a Printable Goal Planner, Step-by-Step Instructions
Brainstorm Worksheet
Having a blank piece of paper or a brainstorming sheet is the place to start. You want to get all of those ideas out of your head and onto paper.
Don’t edit your thoughts, just write them down. There are no wrong answers, just ideas.
Once you have them written, all 30 million of them, it’s time to select only 10.
Yes, that’s right I said 10. Just start with 10, but keep your brainstorming sheet in the back of your goal planner. Because if you are a real goal getter and achieve your first 10 goals. You can add another one to your list.
But start at 10 first. Circle, highlight, or mark in some way the 10 goal ideas you have.
Then it’s time to make our goals smarter!
Smart Goals Template
Like I mentioned above, it’s time to make your goals smart by using the smart goal setting system. Print off one copy of the smart goals worksheet for each goal. Adjust your goals as needed to follow the framework. Think of this as your very own personal goal setting template. When you are done, you have 10 great goals that are smart, too.
Goals Planner Template
The next step is to move your smart goals to your yearly goals worksheet. You’ll only need to print one copy of the goal list template.
Record all of your smart goals here. You want them on one sheet so you can review them regularly.
Put them somewhere you’ll see them. This will help you stayed focused on your goals.
Bonus Tip! To help you focus on your goals: Place the goal you are working on the most on a few sticky notes. Place those sticky notes around the house where you’ll see them. On the mirror in the bathroom, on the refrigerator, on the door you use to leave and come in each day. It will help you automatically review them.
Goal Breakdown Worksheet
On this sheet, you are going to take your long term goals and break them down into mini goals. You want to do this to make actionable plans you can take to achieve those big goals step by step.
It’s much easier to create many smaller goals that lead to your big goal. This tracks the progress of your goals.
Think of this worksheet as your detailed plan to follow to achieve your goal. Each little step has its own due date and leads to the next step. Making it easier to plan your monthly goals, your weekly goals, and daily steps to achieve your goal.
Print one page for each goal you are working on.
But what if your goal is more of a habit and less of a step by step goal? Then what? I’m glad you asked…
Habit Tracker or Goal Tracker Worksheet
A habit tracker sheet is a way for you to track habit goals. These are goals that you have a specific goal to do each day. Like walk 10,000 steps per day.
The habit tracker or goal tracker worksheet can help you see your accomplishment in black and white. So you can track those daily habits you are trying to set up.
Each day you meet your goal, you put an X or a checkmark in that box or circle. If you miss a day, leave it blank and move on.
This can give you a visual picture of how good you are doing. Seeing all those checkmarks in a row. It also helps to put your accomplishment into perspective. Even if you miss a day or even a week over a month, you can see all the days you met your goal.
Use the 30 day habit tracker worksheet if you have a habit goal you are trying to reach.
Monthly Goals Template
You’ll want a way to track your goals monthly. On the monthly planner sheet, you’ll have space to record your goal tasks for each week.
Inside of my goal planner, I have a page specially for recording your tasks for each month. Also included is an undated monthly calendar page in case seeing the entire month on one page is better for you.
Weekly Goal Template
After you have your monthly goals in place, you’ll want to break them down into the goals for the week.
The weekly goal template has space for one task each day of the week. This also serves to plan your daily goals too.
This is the best way to make daily tasks, actionable steps, to achieve a large goal. This sheet helps you breakout the top priorities for the week and day.
On the printable weekly goal sheet, there is space for two goals on each sheet. If you are working on over 2 goals a week, you’ll need to print more than one of this sheet.
Concrete Plan for your Goals
Following the planning steps and recording your goals on the worksheets is the perfect way to achieve your long term and short term goals.
Make this year your year. Think about goal planning and take action and actually plan your goals. When you come to the end of the year, you’ll be so happy, you put in the hard work to plan and achieve your goals.
When you use the right tools for goal planning, it can be simple and easy.
Grab the Printable Goal Planner pack. It’s just the sheets you need to select, plan, and achieve your goals. It’s in pdf format so it’s easy to print or you can load it into an app like GoodNotes and use it as a digital goal planner.
It doesn’t have to be a new year to start. You can get a fresh start right now.
Goal Setting Planner
These sheets are perfect for printable goal setting.
Included in the pack are…
- Monthly Goal Setting Sheets
- Smart Goal Template
- Weekly Goal Planning Sheet and more.
Go over to the Shop and Get the Instant Download
Grab your copy of the Printable Goal Planner pack and get started!