3 Simple Goals For the Non-Creative, Perfectionist Mom

I don’t know about you but I always feel a little bit of a let down once the holidays are over. It’s the heart of winter, all of the leaves are gone from the trees, and it’s freezing outside. Even the house looks sadder with no lights or decorations to brighten it up. Goals and dreams feel furthest from my mind.

Whether you’re in the doldrums because Christmas is over or breathing easier because you have less to do and think about, we can all use a little bit of a re-oriented perspective on the new year. It’s hard to find the energy that we want, and often need, to begin the new year with a bang. I’ve put together a few ways that we can make an impact in 2018.

1. Dream Bigger

So often in January, we set goals like working out more, eating healthier, spending less time on our phone etc. But I want us to dream bigger. I want us to think about our desires, our passions, and our dreams. The ones that are so big that they feel out of reach, unattainable, and nearly impossible. These passions make us who we are and so often as mothers, we lose that in the midst of dirty diapers and sleep deprivation. I don’t want us to lose our dreams, so get a babysitter, grab a coffee, and write down those goals that have been burning inside of you.

Then, write down those dreams and goals. These are goals that could take 5, 10, even 15 years to accomplish. Once you’ve set those big goals, work backward. What are some small steps you can take today to reach those bigger goals? Think practical and reachable.

For example, last year I knew I had a passion for connecting with young mothers in the early stages that can often feel very life-sucking. I have a background in communications and decided I wanted to write a book. Instead of going straight into writing a book, I decided to start a blog, and a year later I’m writing for several different brands and companies.

2. Diminish the clutter

Clutter is typically defined as anything that you don’t love or use. There’s a huge movement towards minimalism and while I don’t believe that minimalism can solve all of our problems, I do believe that there are some great lessons we can learn from minimalism that can help us in every area of our lives. Clutter doesn’t just take up room in our home, it takes up room in our minds and hearts. If we are always distracted by clutter then we won’t be able to focus as much on our families much less our dreams and goals.

There are a lot of different strategies to declutter your home. Some people suggest doing it all at once and some people say to do it gradually. I would advise doing whatever is the least stressful for you but also making a strategic plan on how to get rid of stuff.

3. Do Something Creative

One of my missions in 2018 is to redefine creativity. So often when people hear the word “Creative” they think of painting, knitting, scrapbook, craft type things. And while yes, all of these things are creative, that doesn’t even scratch the surface of what creativity truly is. I would like to address three different type of people who don’t think they can be creative this year.

To the person who thinks they don’t have a creative bone in their body, I would say this, we are all made in the image of God which means we all have attributes that God has. The first time we see God in the Bible, he is creating. He creates night and day, animals, plants, the stars the ocean, the list goes on and on! If we are image bearers of the God of the universe who created everything, then we have some of that creativity in us! This is also in you! So whether you believe it or not, you can be creative! Write a note to someone, cook a new meal, plant a flower, start small!

To the perfectionist- I would say this, none of us are perfect and no matter how hard we try, we never will be perfect. That doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t do our best but if we don’t do things because we don’t think it will turn out perfectly, then we would never do anything. Think about your children. We are constantly encouraging them to be creative and to try new things, but nothing they do is perfect. Far from it, most everything they make is unrecognizable, but does that mean that we shouldn’t encourage them to be creative? Of course not! I would encourage you to look at your life and find ways in your life to be creative that you wouldn’t normally think of.

To the mom who has no time: I am right there with you. Right now I stay at home with my one and a half-year-old and some days the only time I have where I’m not watching her is when she naps for an hour or two. Finding time to be creative was one of my biggest struggles as a new mom. I was constantly torn between needing to clean the house, make dinner, sleep, and catch up on my Netflix show. But I will say this, creativity makes me a better, more sane, coherent, kind person and mother. While creativity may not be your rejuvenating outlet, find something that is in 2018. I promise it will be worth it!