The solopreneur trend I hate: goal setting without context
Why annual goal setting fails most creators, and how to connect daily actions to bigger ambitions.
Every January, I see the same posts: 'My 12 goals for 2025!' But by March, most of those goals are forgotten. The problem isn't lack of ambition — it's lack of context. Goals without a system are just wishes.
I've started using a 'Goal Cascade' in Notion: I write one big-picture annual goal, then break it into quarterly objectives, then monthly milestones, then weekly action items. Each task is linked back to the big goal so I never lose sight of why I'm doing it.
For example, my goal this year was 'Grow email list to 5,000'. Quarterly: launch a freebie. Monthly: write 4 lead magnets. Weekly: design one opt-in page. Seeing the chain makes it feel achievable, not overwhelming.
Try it: pick one goal, write it at the top of a page, then list three things you can do this month to move toward it. Put that list where you'll see it every day. That's not a wish — that's a plan.