3 Steps To Make Progress This Year

A new year brings renewed energy and the opportunity to create a new plan and goals with your loved one for the year.

You may have done this in previous years, and then your plan fell flat, or you didn’t achieve what you wanted.

I want this year to be different for you, so below, I share the critical stages of planning that you need to consider to make your plan come to life this year!

THE FIRST STEP is to look at your emotional readiness. In other words, what are the fears that exist inside of you about the plan you are creating? You need to examine and work through these fears because if you don’t, the plan you create will collect dust on the bookshelf, and you will keep getting your loved one’s way.

THE SECOND STEP is to explore the ordinary possibilities for your loved one. What is possible?! Get outside the ‘Special Needs’ box by asking, “What would be ‘Awesome and Ordinary’ for my loved one this year?” By asking this question, you’re expanding your loved one’s world and creating a better life for them.

THE THIRD STEP is learning best practices. How will you get where you want to go? Other families have already been where you are now, so what can you learn from them? What strategies and tactics did they use to create a better life for their loved one with a developmental disability?!

I want you to make progress this year, so when you are planning and goal setting, consider your emotional readiness, the awesome ordinary possibilities and best practices!

I gave you a high overview of my planning model here. If you’d like more details, you can check out my free resources and workshops at www.empoweringability.org.

Together, let’s keep taking small steps forward!

Eric Goll

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This post originally appeared on our January/February 2023 Magazine