I do New Moon Goal Setting every month.

Of course - you can set any goal you want, any time you want. But the new moon is a great time for this work and having a regular ongoing routine/practice of goal setting gives you the best chance of creating real MOMENTUM for moving towards your dreams.

How are dreams and goals different? Dreams tend to be bigger and more expansive and not always easy to describe in a single sentence. Goals are tangible and measurable. Goals help you move towards dreams.

As I prepare to set new goals for the March new moon, I'm looking back at the goal I set at the February new moon and noticing that I didn't even come close to meeting it.

Not meeting your goals does NOT mean you failed.

Part of the process of goal setting is looking back and noticing what happened after you set the goal and then learning from that. Then you take what you learned, and apply it to the next goal you set.

This process of trial and error and learn-as-you-go is how most big dreams happen.

It's not fancy, but it works.

And it's something ANYONE can do at ANY TIME.

And it turns goal-setting into this magical thing that shows you exactly where you need to learn, grow, and heal, in order to have more of the things you want.

I still remember, about 13 years ago before I was even considering leaving my day job, I made my first online creativity workshop kit and wanted to sell it.

I set a goal to sell 10 kits in one week.

And then.... nothing happened. Didn't sell a single kit.

At the end of the week, upon reflecting on this goal, I had to face all the feelings that came up as I accepted that I had no clue how to sell the kits.

Which lead me to see more clearly that I was waiting for this to happen to me, instead of going out there and creating it.

Which also shone a light on all sorts of other places with my dreams where I wait for it to happen instead of create it for myself.

Which got uncomfortable but also led to a decision: to read a business book.

I hated that business book and I didn't feel that I could do any of those things it talked about, so I went back to my "if I just make stuff that's good enough, people will want it" approach (which does NOT work).

I had to go around and around like this, each time making a decision to take the next step to learn how to create this thing I wanted, instead of waiting for it to happen for me.

Eventually, I started finding business books I could love and taking business classes and working with coaches and figured out MY WAY to sell my work.

I even made my own business class, to share what I'd learned about how I had brought creativity + playfulness + integrity + introspection into the process of sales and marketing and building an online business around sharing your creative gifts. It's called The Creative Business Incubator.

(Right now it's only available to Dream Book members - but at the end of the month there is a special sale happening where you can get just the Creative Business Incubator, plus I'm going to be doing some extra business coaching circles in April.)

You can start out not even knowing how much you don't know about how to get to your goal... and still get to your goal. As long as you don't give up.

Which is why I do a monthly New Moon Alchemy + Coaching circle, as a part of Dream Book, my creative mastermind. NOT to make sure everyone meets their goals every month, but to support everyone in staying in this process where you explore what you need to learn, grow, and heal, in order to have more of the things you want.

As I think back to that first sales goal I set 13 years ago - if I had just magically manifested it back then, would I be where I am today?

Because I LOVE that I trust myself to support myself financially. I LOVE that I KNOW HOW to do this in ways that feel good to me. I wouldn't want to trade what I have now for the experience of the sales just coming to me without me going out there and learning how to create it for myself.

So I always think of that on months when I didn't even get close to meeting my goals, like this month.

Last month, I felt *SO SURE* that I could finish my new project and be getting ready to put it out there.

But, here I am, still calling it "my new project" instead of feeling ready to show you exactly what it is.

At this time of the month, right before the New Moon, I look back to what I wrote on the last New Moon and reflect on what happened.

Did I do my best to show up for this goal?

Did I have the right kinds of support?

What was in the way? Is it what I thought would be in the way or was there an unexpected obstacle?

Is there a lesson for me here?

Is there something for me to let go of?

What does all this tell me about what to do next?

What do I WANT to do next? What feels inspiring now?

Again, this is NEVER about forcing myself to reach the goal on time.

It's ALWAYS about engaging with the process, which teaches me about the inner and outer healing and growth and change that need to happen for me to do this thing.

This month, it feels PERFECT that I didn't meet my goal.

I did do my best with it for the first 2 weeks, and then something unexpected happened.

On the February Full Moon, I lead the BREAKTHROUGH Alchemy Coaching Circle, which of course sparked a breakthrough. I was expecting some kind of breakthrough, I was not expecting the way it happened.

And then on the next day, my husband and I did a ceremony to feed a snake and a bear who had come to him in his dreams. If you know anything about Native American teachings you know that's some serious stuff, and that ceremony sparked some big lessons for us both.

And then this big unexpected thing happened and now we are making some equally big and unexpected changes.

So goal which was SO IMPORTANT to me at the February New Moon needs to take a backseat to the new things that are happening. And even though I didn't reach my goal, I am moving towards my dream.

This kind of reflection is VITAL for your dream.

Without it, this month of not meeting my goal becomes this shameful embarrassing thing.

I mean - I'm a life coach but I can't even meet my own goals? What's wrong with me? is the story that gets fed and then shoved underground where it will make it harder to make progress on my goals because it's nurturing the seeds of I'm a failure and I won't follow through so why bother.

And all of that stuff just festers.

WITH this reflection, I feel good about how this month went. I accept where I am. I feel proud of myself. I feel inspired and ready to set another goal and move forward again, understanding that I may not get to where I WANT to get next month, but I know I'll get to the right place as long as I keep showing up for myself.

Do this Magical New Moon Goal Setting with me.

The March New Moon Alchemy + Coaching Circle is happening on March 12 - tomorrow. The replay is available a few hours after the live call is done so you have a few days to do this call in the New Moon energy.

This is where we dig into ALL of this magic together.

This call is for everyone who is Dream Book - join us here.