New Year. New goals.

Today we are talking about one of my favorite activities: setting career goals. As an over-planner, I enjoy evaluating myself and setting new goals.

While taking quizzes and writing out plans are the fun parts, actually reaching those goals is hard.

I recently began listening to a podcast called “Happier with Gretchen Rubin.” “Happier” has episodes from the past two years, and somehow I had never discovered it until this Fall. I LOVE this podcast because it gives me quick, practical advice backed by science. Rubin talks about easy ways to develop daily habits, making it easier to achieve the success I want in life.

When I was thinking about the end of the year, this podcast reminded me of my first encounter with the work of Gretchen Rubin. Rubin wrote the book Better Than Before* around the same time she started the podcast. which is when I read it. If you are looking for a book to inspire positive growth next year and give you science-based ways to do it, I highly recommend giving it a read.

Better Than Before Summary

As with many other books about habits, Better Than Before walks through what forms habits, why they do or do not stick, and how to create new ones.

“In ordinary terms, a ‘habit’ is generally defined as a behavior that’s recurrent, is cued by a specific context, often happens without much awareness or conscious intent, and is acquired through frequent repetition,” explains Rubin.

Rubin does a good job of helping you identify your tendencies, which helps you learn more about your own habit formation.

Me? I am an obliger, meaning I uphold promises, habits, and obligations to others but struggle to keep promises that I make to myself.

When I try to create healthy habits, the best way to start is with scheduling. By keeping a regular schedule, obligers create a ritual and eventually a habit. Act like this new habit is just like any other important appointment — do not cancel, be on-time, and put in on your to-do list.

Other Goal-Setting Books

Wanting a wider assortment of books about setting and reaching goals? Here are some recommendations from other websites.

• Goodreads Popular Goal Setting Books
• HuffPost’s Goals that Self-Help Books Will Help You Achieve
• Lifehacker’s 14 Books to Help You Always Reach Your Goals

Writing It Down

For me, writing and planning my new goals and habits is the first step toward achieving them. Built by Books has a few resources to help, including our development plan worksheet and a workbook to help you find your calling. Click the photos or sign up below to download them for free!

What do you want to achieve this year? Share in our comments!

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*This post contains an affiliate link for the book Better Than Before. As a bookworm, I only recommend the books I love. I hope you like it, too!