When a member of your family becomes disabled, life all of a sudden becomes all about them for awhile. Plans and goals are placed on hold while everyone learns to adapt to the new situation. It is so easy to just walk away from your goals and lament the fact that you never get anywhere in life.
I have become a firm believer in writing down my goals, both personal and for my family. This is different from my daily to do list. It is a list of the things I am working toward. My daily to do list is an extension of my goal list.
Steve and I have regular discussions about our goals. These are not formal "sit down" discussions. They are more discussions that happen in the car or while we are hanging out on our deck. They include replenishing our savings, buying a home, replacing our car and becoming better organized. Whenever we add to our goals as a family, I add it to my family goal list.
When I am creating my to do list and Steve's "honey do" list, I try to ask "How is this working toward our goals?"
I also try to have a single goal as the "main" goal. For example, we have decided that becoming more organized will help us reach our other goals. So, my to do lists focus on becoming more organized.
Having a written list of goals keeps us accountable as a family. I use Remember the Milk as for my list making app and my goal list is shared with Steve. That way we both have a visual clue as to where we are going as a family. We revisit our goals regularly (usually while driving or chatting on the deck) and make modifications as needed.
Do you have goals as a family? Do you have them written down?
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