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Giving yourself a planning retreat for the New Year (or anytime really) is a great way to set goals and make a plan for yourself, your family, etc.
I haven’t even made any resolutions yet.
But you know what? I’m not worried!
For one, I don’t make “resolutions,” per se. Instead, I set goals and plan action steps to complete them.
The best way for me to do this as a wife, a mom of four, a homemaker, and businessowner?
Get out of the house!
I’ve been giving myself personal planning retreats for years–starting when I was single and fresh out of college.I grab my Bible, some good pens, a notebook, a planner, and any other materials I might need for my planning session.
Some of my retreats have taken on a more spiritual emphasis, with me really seeking the Lord for how I wanted to grow in Him the next year.
Some have been more health or homemaking focused. This coming weekend, I’m giving myself a personal retreat that will be more business and writing focused, as I pray through wherethe Lordwants this site to go in the next year.
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Some of my retreats have included all of these areas of my life–like the retreat I took this summer, when I was able to spend three nights at a hotel by myself.
(Thank you, hubby and Mom!)
I wasn’t able to start taking overnight retreats until my youngest turned 2, but even when I was only able to take a few hours at a coffee shop, giving myself a personal planning retreat has always been worth my while.
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Here are my top 3 reasons for giving yourself a personal planning retreat:
1. It’s hard to concentrate at home.
I say that I have adult ADD. I do not know if that is true, but I promise I am the most easily distracted person ever. Just ask my hubby who comes home to a half-vacuumed carpet because I’ve realized I need to finish the laundry in the middle of cleaning the floors!
Even though I am a work-at-home mom, it is very difficult for me to do long-range goal setting and vision casting while at home. It takes me getting out of the house with a set purpose and plan for my retreat.
2. Where there is no vision, the people perish.
I have always loved this verse from Proverbs.
When there is no direction in life, we might as well be wandering aimlessly in the desert.
But everyday life doesn’t allow much time for vision casting, does it?
For me, it takes setting aside special timeand seeking God for the plans He has for me. Whenyou take time to dream and plan in advance, you’ll have more direction for how to order your daily schedule and duties.
3. Even homemakers need to dream.
I’ve been a dreamer my whole life, to the point that I now dub myself a “professional dreamer.” I even enjoy dreaming dreams for others!
But you know what? Dreaming is not a bad thing! God has set dreams in our hearts for a reason, and just because we are all grown up and have families of our own does not mean it’s time to stop!
Napoleon Hill once said: “A goal is a dream with a deadline.”
And my personal planning retreats are just that–a time to pen my dreams and give them deadlines to make them happen.
Be bold in your dreams. Set goals and plans that will help you grow as a woman and in all of your current roles–as a mom, wife, homemaker, employee/employer, friend, and anything else you set your hand to.
Would you like to give yourself a personal planning retreat?
I enjoy taking personal retreats at the beginning of each year, but since my children are past the baby stage, I am now able to take them multiple times per year.
It really doesn’t matterwhen you take your retreats–as long as you take them!
Would you like to give yourself a personal planning retreat?
Maybe you do, but you don’t know where to start.
I published an eBook to help others get started with their own personal planning retreats. Your Retreat: A Guide to Giving Yourself a Personal Planning Daycomes with 35 printables to guide you through your own retreat! Find out more aboutYour Retreathere.
On Sale for $5 through January!
Want more inspiration for giving yourself a personal planning retreat? Listen in on my podcast on this with Kat Lee of Inspired to Action, and check out my friend Leigh Ann’s eBookLive for Him! If you have a longer retreat planned, her 81-page eBook would be an excellent read to take along!
