Like many companies, Cultivate What Matters has a guarantee. Here it is: we'll be with you each step of the way.
I love this. We can't faithfully guarantee that your life will change or that you'll achieve all of your goals when you use your PowerSheets® (though we have seen both happen countless times!). We can, however, guarantee that we—Team Cultivate—will be at your side, on your page, in your ear, and on your screen with tips, truth, and encouragement day in and day out.
But here's the really neat thing: that "we" doesn't only include our ten-member team. It also includes the thousands of women around the world—some who've been using PowerSheets since they debuted in 2012!—who answer questions on our Instagram feed, post their Tending Lists, offer suggestions in our private Facebook group, share PowerSheets with their friends, and show up to our live events. They—you!—are part of why so many women have found success with our proven process.
Being in community while you set and work toward your goals is like adding fertilizer to a garden—everything grows bigger, healthier, more quickly, and more beautifully! Don't go it alone this year, friends.
Here, our top five reasons why you should set goals in community:
1. You'll stay accountable. Like so many things in our lives, goals wither and die in the dark, and flourish in the light! If you know someone will be checking in on your progress, or asking you how your goals are going; you'll have additional fire to take those little steps forward.
A great example: Nancy posts her goals to her blog every month, knowing that readers will expect a follow-up at the end of the next month—and she credits that with why she's made so much little-by-little progress over the years!
Photo by the wonderful Rachel Coffey!
2. You'll be encouraged to live differently. At the Making Things Happen Conference, we talk about how we're each the average of the five people with whom we spend the most time. Our goals are about the things we want to change or augment in our lives. If your five people are living the way you want to live—whether being present with their kids, making time for their friends, putting down their phones, or anything else you aspire to—you'll be encouraged to keep moving toward your goals as you watch them live their lives.
3. You'll be inspired to think bigger. Likewise, surrounding yourself with other goal getters will remind you that change is possible. If you watch someone else break through a rigid identity box or dream big, you'll be challenged to stretch outside your comfort zone, too.
Goals are about growing, which can feel uncomfortable in the moment. Being around other growing gals can inspire you to embrace that tension and use it to fuel you to where you want to be.
4. You'll learn from others. We get farther, faster, when we surround ourselves with people a little ahead of us on the path. Whether it's picking up a tip, adapting a habit that works for someone else, or adopting a mindset, learning from others is one of the few worthwhile shortcuts in life. There's no room for comparison or envy here, just an appreciation for what others have to teach and a willingness to learn!
An example: I've been married for 7 years. I love to spend time with married couples I admire because it inspires me to think and act differently. I might take inspiration from the way they speak to each other or something they do for each other, and I always leave excited to make my own relationship better!
5. You'll be in it for the long-haul. At a friend's wedding, she shared the words "we gather together to remember what we would so easily forget apart," and that has stuck with me. This desire to use our days well, to hold a big-picture vision for our lives and move toward it day by day, is a bit counter-cultural. If no one in your life is walking alongside you in that effort, it can get lonely and hard. To stay the course long-term, it helps to hear from other people saying "me, too" and "yes, this matters."
A few ways we can help you set goals in community:
- Follow us on Instagram (join in our Tending List Tuesday broadcast each week!).
- If you're a PowerSheets user, join our private Facebook community.
- Come to the Making Things Happen Conference. Tickets go on sale NEXT WEDNESDAY, November 6, and we would love to see you there! The community built at MTH is powerful and authentic, and it lasts long after we leave the Carolina Inn.
I'd love to hear: how do you incorporate community into your goal setting? Have you seen benefits from doing so?
Psst—sign up to here about future in-person community events below!
Emily Thomas
This is His Year: our first-of-its-kind workbook to let your faith inform the goals you set for the New Year.
Set, plan, and track progress toward the goals that matter most, big or small, the things you’ve always wanted to do—with PowerSheets!