We know there is one uncle in your family group-chat still greeting everyone with those “Happy New Year” Canva flyers, and he probably thinks he’s hilarious, bless his novice-level graphic designing heart.

But is the year still “new” if we’re nearing three months in?

Apart from this obviously quite philosophical and thought-provoking question, another one dey;

How are those New Year resolutions going, hm? Still crushing them? Or are you currently battling principalities and powers?

Whatever the answer, we’re here – as usual – to help.

In our goal-setting article, we emphasised the importance of understanding the “why”, and rightly so, because understanding why you’re working towards something is great motivation – especially for the days when you really want to drop the ball.

We’ve all been there.

But another key to achieving your goals is checking in on progress and reviewing them.

In some small, maybe imperceptible way – or maybe even significantly – you’re not the same person you were at the beginning of the year, and those changes should also come with some introspection on your end, gentle reader.

We also hate homework, but it must be done, sorry.

So, let’s get into it!

First, let’s self-reflect

Have you reviewed your goals recently? 

It’s the simplest way to start checking in on yourself and your goals. Open your journal or wherever you wrote your aspirations down, and give them a good, hard look.

Are you still passionate about these goals? 

We’re no experts, but when you see your goals you’re supposed to feel motivated, not discouraged.

Also, according to this study at Michigan State University, 76% of participants who wrote down their goals, actions and provided weekly progress to a friend successfully achieved their goals.

So, are your goals still hitting the spot? Do they still resonate with your original “why”? Do they still matter to you?

If yes, then great! But if they inspire more “ugh”, than “let’s go!” Then maybe you need to edit your list.

Have your circumstances changed, and require goal adjustments?

As much as we’d like to pretend it isn’t, Nigeria is not getting any easier to live in, and while we gave some tips earlier on how to fool the masses into believing you’re rich, the reality isn’t so easily covered up.

Say you decided to take fitness classes of some sort this year – like those at Prime Fitness in Ibadan or get regular full body tests with Healthtracka - but can you still afford it with the recent inflation? Do you need to look for a cheaper alternative or look to at-home fitness pursuits?

Now that your thinking cap is on, let’s move.

Evaluation tips

Revisit your why and be honest about it.

Not to sound like a broken record, but the why is very key here. It will help you assess your progress realistically and identify areas where you might need to adjust.

On days when you feel low, you might need to remind yourself of the initial motivation behind each goal to reignite your commitment.

Why do you want to explore Nigeria (ahem, GIG, ahem)? Does it still feed your adventurous spark?

Do you still have the same desires?

Make adjustments

This is a reminder that you are allowed to modify your goals or strategies if needed.

Remember, progress, not perfection, is key.

Maybe your goal to see your friends more consistently this year has become a lot more accessible for you because you make more money now, so you could increase the frequency of your visits/trips – try Travelbeta - to adjust that goal.

See, our sense just full ground.

But what if you’re having trouble staying on the good path till the end?

Strategies for staying on track

Break down large goals

No one is expecting you to cure cancer, start a million-naira business on Flutterwave Market, and still call your mum every day all in one month.

Breathe.

As we mentioned in the goal-setting article, breaking your goals down into smaller, more manageable steps will make the goal as a whole a lot less daunting for you. We love the SMART system (making goals that are Specific Measurable Achievable Relevant/Realistic and Time-bound), but any other one works as well.

The point is being able to analyse and deconstruct your goal into actionable and maybe even everyday tasks, just so they don’t look so big and discouraging.

Imagine your goal was to stop eating bread, maybe don’t jump into it so brazenly (because no one will carry you if you fall, you’re grown). Start by reducing the amount of bread you eat on a daily or weekly basis, then work your way up to no bread at all.

It’s not do (all at once) or die.

Track your gains

We advise you to use a journal (like the ones from the Challenge Bookshop) or an app – maybe The Bookgraph? – or a planner to monitor your progress visually.

It helps to physically see your progress and makes it more real to you.

They also help you see any recurring patterns or snags in your progress, so you can really know what is doing you.

Find an accountability partner

Sometimes, you really can’t do it all alone.

Hard facts.

The American Society for Training and Development (ASTD) conducted a study on the effectiveness of accountability partners and found that simply committing to a goal with another person increased the likelihood of completion to 65%. And, those who had regular check-ins with their accountability partner saw their success rate jump to an impressive 95%.

If that’s not motivation to get an accountability partner, then we don’t know what is. For example, if your goal is to be more social this year, the DiD app is a great place to find like-minded people who also want to go out and have a good time.

So, share your goals with the right friend or family member for support and encouragement, don’t be shy.

Celebrate your progress!

All work and no play makes Shalewa a very dull girl. So, let’s help Shalewa (you).

A big part of goals is also acknowledging and celebrating achievements leading up to the big “Goal accomplished” sign – no matter how small.

Say a goal of yours is to reduce daily social media use by 25% in 2024 – maybe by playing some games from KC from NIBCARD in your downtime instead of scrolling like a wanderer – and by your metric, you’ve cut it down by 10%.

That in itself is worthy of celebration. Take yourself to a nice dinner, or buy that perfume you’ve been eying from Scentscape (in this economy, it will probably only get more expensive, so) and just remind yourself that you’re doing this for yourself, so you deserve some praise too.

Acknowledging and celebrating yourself also gives you another reason to want to follow through with your goals; for every milestone reached, you know you get something, no matter how small it is (maybe a cute candle from Soyworks or a new read from Roving Heights).

You could even think of it as a game, whatever works for you, really.

But, as with everything else, things don’t always go to plan, and it’s something that needs to be acknowledged too.

Addressing setbacks

Look, sometimes you fall off the wagon, but that doesn’t mean the end of the world.

Remember, progress isn’t always linear.

Setbacks are normal. There are days you put too much salt in your beans, e dey happen.

It’s important to remember that goal setting is for you and your betterment – not for you to tear yourself down – and they don’t only make you better when you accomplish them; it’s cheesy, but the journey is what really matters.

When you feel like you’ve deviated from your plan, take a step back, reassess your goal, take note of what the obstacle was, plan how to avoid it next time, and then focus on moving forward – as long as the goal still matters to you.

You can even share the incidents with your accountability partner or a support group because chances are, you’re not the only one who has taken a few hits on the road.

We believe in you, dear.

So, you can see that setting New Year goals isn’t a one-and-done affair. There’s a continuous process of reevaluation and (if needed) amendment throughout.

This also means that it’s never too late to decide your primary 2024 goal is to eat more fufu (we aren’t judging, honestly).

We’ve come up with our Goal Check-in Index – because we believe that you should have the tools and resources you need to plan for, work at, and achieve all your goals.

Combine this with our New-Year New You index and you just might have all you need to take over the world

The Goal Check-in Index

Now that you’ve done a thorough check of your 2024 goals, tell us, are you still on track? Experiencing some technical difficulties, hm? Or do you not have any goals yourself? (again, never too late).

Spill your tea in the comments below (we came with cups, don’t worry).

Edit from the future

We asked you to spill the tea, and you did (bravo!) so here’s a special little section for you…

Your responses