The idea of setting up goals has always scared me. At the end of December, my fiancé brought up the idea of us setting some goals for 2014 and I’m pretty sure I gave her the “side eye” (similar to the look our dog Jasper gives us when we tell him it’s not dinner time yet). And then I likened it to being back in school, as if there would be a professor looking over my work and assigning a grade. So naturally, she dropped the conversation.

But as soon as the new year began, a bunch of blogs about goals and goal-setting began crowding my Facebook feed, demanding I give them some attention. When the world gives you signs, it’s hard not to stop and listen. So I read one, and then another, and “liked” them on Facebook. The funny thing about Facebook though, is that it doesn’t let you keep a secret. If you “like” a post, then everyone, including my fiancé, knows about it. And when I brought up the goal conversation with her again, it was her turn to give me the “side eye,” and question why I had to “like” everyone else’s goal thoughts before listening to hers?

Truth is, she had a point. And so, I listened. And decided to give it some more thought. She told me that setting goals was more about writing down our dreams (big, small and everything in-between), setting up steps along the way, and revising them when we decide to change our mind. Because we’re grown, and we can always change our mind! (Yes, she’s a smart one, and one of my future goals should be to listen to her more often…)

Let’s rewind a bit to the end of 2013, when I began questioning myself and this “photographer” label. I love photography, and I photograph anything and everything, but except for Thanksgiving & Christmas, I haven’t used my big camera (DSLR) in a while. I’ve been quite content focusing on iPhoneography, while also waiting for a spark of creativity to pick up the big camera again. And without that spark, my inner thoughts were focused on whether I should continue pursuing a photography business. Just saying that out loud was hard. I didn’t admit that to anyone, not even my fiancé, until this amazing thing happened…

I won a year-long subscription to Showit, my website company, thanks to the celebratory launch of my friend’s new business venture, The Wordsmithery*. If all those Facebook goal-oriented posts were signs, then this was a HUGE sign. And both were pointing me in a specific direction.

But the signs don’t end there. Yesterday, as the fiancé and I were being photographed by Sarah, of Portraits to the People, for The Identity Project**, Sarah echoed my fiancé’s thoughts on goals, and encouraged me to create some of my own, and followed it up by stating, “the world will be a better place with you as a full time photographer”.

So, I’m listening.

God is paving a way for me and I am listening.

No need to give up hope, here. Especially when the world is leading me in the direction of greater things. And tonight, I’ve got a date with my fiancé, a bowl of sweet potato & kale soup, and a goal-setting session.

If you’re new to setting goals this year, I’d love to hear them! Or, if you have some good ideas/inspiration related to the goal-setting process, please share!

xoxo, cristal veronica

 

*If you’re a photographer, or a small-business owner needing some online presence writing assistance, you should go check out The Wordsmithery, run by a couple of awesome people, Megan & Andrew, who love being of service to others.

**If you are in the LGBTQ family, live in the SF bay area, check out and participate in The Identity Project. Sarah is doing big things for our community.