Why I Will Not Set Goals In 2025
As the calendar turns to 2025, the temptation to set lofty goals is ever present. New Year’s resolutions and goal-setting planners promise transformation and success. But by the second Monday of January, most will have quit the goals they started. This year, I’m choosing a different approach, and here’s why.
In 2017, my carefully crafted goals fell apart due to unexpected health issues. In 2019, similar setbacks derailed my plans once again. Then came 2020. I entered that year full of optimism, determined to live out the theme: “2020 Vision,” both in the church and personally. We all know how that turned out! COVID changed everything.
Each of these years taught me a painful but valuable lesson: life is unpredictable. Circumstances beyond our control can render even the best-laid plans irrelevant. It’s not that goal setting is bad — it’s not. But this year, instead of setting specific goals, I’m focusing on something more foundational: habits and consistency. It’s like what Clear says in his book Atomic Habits: “The implicit assumption behind any goal is this: ‘Once I reach my goal, then I’ll be happy.’ The problem with a goals-first mentality is that you’re continually putting happiness off until the next milestone.”
Habits are the quiet, steady rhythms that carry us forward. Daily consistency in small things—whether in your spiritual walk (daily Bible reading with morning coffee), relationships (insert date nights on the calendar the first of every month), or physical health (walking on a treadmill before I sit down when I get home from work)—lays the groundwork for long-term growth. Habits don’t crumble under unexpected pressures; they adapt and persist. New goals and plans are great but rarely last because you haven’t changed who you are.
So, if you’re considering your plans for 2025, let me encourage you: goals are fine, but habits are better. Be consistent in the small things, and trust God to guide you through the big things.
It’s not a sprint but a marathon. Let’s start building habits that will set a trajectory that allows us to flourish year after year!
*If you have not read Atomic Habits by James Clear, I encourage you to make it your first “habit” in 2025!
Treg Spicer is pastor of Faith Baptist Church – Morgantown, WV. Follow his blog here. We republish his articles by permission.
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