The Importance of Setting Goals as an Elderly

The New Year sparks excitement and hopefulness that this year you will accomplish your goals and change yourself for the better. As seniors, it is easy to feel lost during this season as common resolutions include career or familial goals that you may have already fulfilled in your lifetime.

You might think that you’ve done everything that you wanted to do, or maybe you have regrets and believe that because you are elderly, there is no hope in achieving them. However, setting goals is important, especially if you are an elderly person. Setting goals has been shown to improve self-esteem, physical activity, and create a positive attitude about life. 

From a psychological perspective, setting goals rewires your brain into focusing on the ideal version of yourself. Your self-esteem will not be dependent on things out of your control, but the things that you choose to do for yourself. Little setbacks will not feel as heavy and it will be easier to follow through with things. Not only that, but with retirement, it’s easy to feel stagnant, like your life is already complete. You might feel bored with life, like everything you’ve wanted to do has been completed or isn’t possible anymore. This is not true at all, setting goals will help you give a renewed purpose in life. It doesn’t matter how big or small they are, there are a few proven ways to increase the likelihood of completing goals resulting in a better, happier you. 

Small Steps Make a Big Difference

The first thing to do is set small, attainable goals that you know would benefit your life. This could be anything ranging from exercising once a day, calling your grandchildren, trying out new dishes, or reading more. Once you’ve figured out what you would like to do, write down small steps to achieve it. For example, if you want to exercise for 30 minutes every day, set a goal to exercise once every two days, or start exercising 10 minutes every day and slowly increase it over time. Setting small steps like this and accomplishing them will help you realize that you are capable of completing your resolutions.

Write Down your Goals 

Did you know that writing down your goals will increase your likelihood of completing them by 40 percent? That is a significant percentage for something so easy to do. So, write down your long-term goals or “New Year's Resolutions” and put them somewhere you can see. I like to put mine next to my bedroom door so that I can see them first thing every day. If you want to be even more productive, write down daily goals every morning and cross them off as you complete them. The physical act of writing them will make you remember what you want to accomplish. It will also keep you more accountable for your actions. Review them every night before bed; seeing the goals you accomplished throughout the day will build up self-confidence and make it easier to relax at night. 

Reward Yourself

This may be an obvious one, but reward yourself after completing a goal. This will motivate you even more because you’ll have an incentive to complete tasks. The rewards can be as simple as taking a nap or watching a favorite film. Over time, your brain will be rewired to receive a rush of dopamine after achieving your goals, naturally making you more motivated and confident. 

Setting goals will improve your life and self-esteem dramatically. Take this fresh, new year to change things for the better. You are never too old to stop living and dreaming.

— Madison Calhoon