Accomplish Your Goals | Rachael Burgess

The Immature Reason I Started Blogging + How to Accomplish Goals

I have to admit, I started blogging and Instagramming for a slightly immature reason. I had wanted to do it for quite awhile, but hadn’t committed to taking the plunge. After telling someone (who I thought was my friend) about this plan, I felt very clearly that she didn’t think I could do it. I set out to prove her wrong, and finally found the motivation to pursue my idea’s full speed ahead. What started out as a desire to prove someone wrong, has turned into SO much learning and experience. Today I am going to talk about how to accomplish your goals, using my success with my blog as an example.

Accomplish Your Goals | Rachael Burgess

What continues to motivate me every day to blog (other than my passion for writing, music and taking pictures) is a lot different now. I grew up with the idea that men provided for the family and women watched the children. My parents always encouraged me to dream big and told me that I could accomplish whatever I put my mind too. But for some reason I was under the impression that once you became a mom, it was time to drop personal interests and devote 100% of your everything to your kids. This idea didn’t ever sit well with me.

Don’t get me wrong, there is no question that my kids are my number one. I would, at any moment, drop everything if they needed me. But as my blog has grown into something that financially supports our family, I realized something enlightening. Being economically independent, while doing something you LOVE, is extremely empowering. My happiness centers in my family, they are my everything. But I feel more alive, confident, complete, and ready to conquer the world, when I am successful in personal ways, outside of motherhood. I want to teach my children that having a family doesn’t mean sacrificing yourself in the process. Being a devoted and involved mom is hard, but it doesn’t mean you can’t accomplish your goals. It just means you have to work a little harder.

Now this probably seems unrelated to the above, but stay with me. After major hair thinning when I was pregnant with Zander, my hair is finally growing back to its former glory. It has only been a month since I colored my hair and I already have an inch of my darker roots showing! I couldn’t wait to touch up my roots again, so I went to Walmart and grabbed a box of color Keratin Color. And this is where I get back on topic…

Accomplish Your Goals | Rachael Burgess

I use Keratin Color because it gives professional quality hair color, while caring for your hair and causing less breakage. Since my hair is just regaining health, that is important to me. But mostly I love what Keratin Color stands for. Keratin Color has recently partnered with Dress for Success®, an organization that helps empower women to achieve economic independence. It can be hard to accomplish your goals alone, but this partnership empowers women looking for success, to revitalize their hair and clothing, so they can be as successful as they look. Dress for Success has already helped millions of women find success through mentoring and education. Now Keratin Color is helping too. It feels good to know that when I buy a box, I am supporting such a worthy cause. I know first hand how empowering it is to accomplish your goals financially. I love that Keratin is helping other women to experience this same feeling.

Accomplish Your Goals | Rachael Burgess

As a mom, blogger, singer and med student wife, I have a lot on my plate. But that doesn’t mean I can’t accomplish my personal goals. If you want to accomplish your goals, and be productive every day, it just takes some thought and planning. Here are some steps you can take to accomplish your goals and feel successful every day.

6 Steps to Conquer the Day and Accomplish your Goals

1. Write a to do list every night!

Every night I like to write down a list of things I need to do the next day. I use an online blogging planner (CoSchedule, it is AMAZING) to easily schedule all my work tasks two weeks in advance. Then I add other important things to those lists the night before. If I don’t take time to write my lists, I often start the morning slowly. It takes longer to accomplish your goals when you don’t have a clear plan in advance.

2.  Dress for success and simplify your beauty routine.

Even if I am not leaving the house, I like to start by getting dressed, doing my hair and putting on makeup. That way if a job or social activity comes up, I am able to leave the house quickly. Not to mention I am more productive when I get off the couch and out of my sweatpants! I like to keep my beauty routine really simple. For example I wear these magnetic lashes and lipstick, and that’s it most days. Also I keep my hair fresh with Keratin Color which is so easy to use at home. It really is only 5 simple steps:

  1. Put on the gloves and apply the pretreatment to your hair.
  2. Mix the developer and creme according to the instructions and then do a patch test on your skin.
  3. Apply 2/3rd’s of the solution to your roots and wait twenty minutes.
  4. Saturate the rest of your hair with the remaining solution and wait another 10-15 minutes.
  5. Rinse, shampoo and condition.

Accomplish Your Goals | Rachael Burgess

Sorry, I got a little sidetracked – back to how to accomplish your goals with step 3…

Accomplish Your Goals | Rachael Burgess

3. Start with the biggest priority or hardest task.

Organize your list by priorities and start with the most urgent. If they are all equal priority level, then start with the hardest task first. This way at the end of the day you feel like you accomplished something big, no matter what. I used to take pictures first, and then write my blog posts, because photography is so fun for me. Writing takes twice as long as pictures. Now I write first, so when I photograph I am able to really enjoy the process. If you accomplish the hard things first, you can enjoy the smaller things more.

4. Pause and care for yourself.

Make sure to pause and care for yourself throughout the day. This is one I am not great at. I get so into my work that sometimes I forget to drink water, eat food, and exercise… On days where I forget to STOP working, I am actually less productive. When I pause to relax and care for myself once in awhile, I get more done in the long run.

Accomplish Your Goals | Rachael Burgess

5. Learn to say NO.

This is a hard one for me also. Sometimes you have to just say no. If you take on too many commitments and social plans, you just won’t have time to accomplish your goals. I have had to turn down several assignments I have been asked to do in my community, and it definitely is awkward in the moment. I am always worried someone will be offended. But in the end I have to prioritize my goals above other commitments, if I want to be successful.

6. Evaluate the day and start again at step 1!,

At the end of the day when you write your list, evaluate how the day went. Pay attention to things you consistently don’t have/make time for. Are they really a priority for you? Or should you take them off the list? If your list is just too long, then reevaluate and set more realistic goals for the next day.

Accomplish Your Goals | Rachael Burgess

People ask me sometimes if I plan to stop blogging when Kris is a doctor. The answer is no. Blogging isn’t about the money (although we do love that!!), it is about me. I feel happier and more self confident when I am able to accomplish my goals and conquer the day. And my productivity doubles (at least) when I follow the simple steps above. By far, my greatest tool for productivity is CoSchedule, read more about that in my recent blog post: The Ultimate Calendar.

How do you accomplish your goals? What makes you feel successful? Is economic independence important to you?

Keep scrolling for more pictures or…

SkipButton


Sweater: Forever 21


Accomplish Your Goals | Rachael BurgessAccomplish Your Goals | Rachael BurgessAccomplish Your Goals | Rachael BurgessAccomplish Your Goals | Rachael BurgessAccomplish Your Goals | Rachael Burgess Accomplish Your Goals | Rachael BurgessAccomplish Your Goals | Rachael BurgessAccomplish Your Goals | Rachael Burgess Accomplish Your Goals | Rachael Burgess

6 Responses

  1. Loved reading this! I think it’s so important to do the things that make you feel alive and I love how you so clearly show how one can be an amazing mom while still following her dreams! Thank you for sharing!

  2. Haha, well you showed that person wrong that’s for sure! Love your blog 😻! Also, saying NO is the hardest hardest lesson to learn and I swear I will never fully get it down.

  3. I absolutely love everything about this blog post – the photos, your hair, and how you found success as a blogger! I, too, become incredibly determined when someone challenges me, so I can completely relate. Thanks for your beautiful work! #client

Leave a Reply to Kennedy Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

More posts you might like

Hello!

Login to access exclusive, unfiltered content. New posts daily – straight from my camera roll.

Subscribe below for a free gift from me.