Mind Mapping Your Way to Success in 2013

Happy New Year! I know it is totally cliche to set resolutions for the new year and such, but if it works, who cares? Today we are talking about making it work.

Have you heard of mind mapping? Or visual mapping, which is what I thought it was called until I browsed the google. Well, if you are a visual person, you’re going to love this.

I recently met Tabitha from Meet Penny via a Twitter chat and she invited me to join a group of bloggers on Facebook. I am so very glad I did. These ladies are pretty awesome. Anywho, Tabitha encouraged us to create a visual for our blogging goals of 2013. Once I did, I became a little hooked. I made my blog goals visual, a visual for a project I’m working to launch in July, and one for something new around here called Healthy Habits.

Rabbit-trail with me, if you will, through the blogger group, I met Dollie of Teachers of Good Things. She was wanting to start a group of bloggers to chronicle their healthy new year’s resolutions to create accountability for the blogger and encouragement for the readers. She’s also launching a Facebook party, which she will be hosting each Monday night at 9 p.m. (eastern) starting January 7.

So, let me introduce you to Healthy Habits Tuesday. Hi, how are you? Nice to meet you. Now that we have that out of the way, on to the mind mapping, goals, and resolutions, oh my!

Step One: Set some goals. Grab a pencil and paper and start writing. A couple tips on setting goals (or resolutions) that work:

• Be realistic – Weight loss is a common new year’s resolution, so I’ll use that for my example here. Don’t set yourself up for failure by trying to lose half your body weight by next month.
• Break it down – Take what you need to lose and aim to lose one pound per week. It may take a while to get where you want to be, but you’ll get there. So if you want to lose 20 pounds, that is 20 weeks or 5 months. Aiming to lose 20 pounds by June is completely doable.

Step Two: Analyze your goals. Look for a common theme. For example, if you want to lose 10 pounds, kick the soda habit, and walk in a 5K, those are related. Taking a cooking class would also be related. Learning a new language? Not so much.

Step Three: Focus on the main goal. Do you have one in the group that is most important to you? That is your starting point.

Step Four: Break out the unlined paper. Put your main goal in the middle. Around that, put the related goals that are ways to work toward achieving your main goal, these are your strategy points. Our example would have lose 10 pounds in the middle and then kick soda habit, walk in a 5K, and taking a cooking class around it.

Circle your points individually and draw arrows from your main goal to your strategy points.

Next, look at your strategy points and break down how to achieve them. Kick the soda habit may have drink 64 oz. water daily, drink 1 less soda per week until 0, drink herbal tea, or start a dollar jar for each soda you DON’T drink.

Make sense? Good, now go do it. I’ll wait here until you’ve finished and then we’ll move on.

Step Five: Make it purty. Or not, it’s up to you. Break out the markers and paper. Or use the computer to create your visual. It’s up to you. Point is, make it visually appealing to you, you’re going to be looking at this a lot.

Here is my Healthy Habits mind map:

Now, WHEN you do this, let me know in the comment section. I love, love, love comments and do my best to answer each one. You can also follow my new healthy habits Pinterest board.

Next week, we will talk about turning your goals into action. You should also check out the exciting things I have planned for the Vicki Arnold blog this coming year.

Won’t you join me? Twitter…Pinterest…Facebook

Today’s link up can be found here.

Next up is Turning Your Goals Into Plans!