This week on #bufferchat, our community looked ahead at 2018, chatting about setting goals and how to achieve them throughout the year! Read on to discover all of the awesome insights shared during the chat!
Catch our weekly Twitter chat, #bufferchat, at TWO times every Wednesday for valuable industry insights and to meet hundreds of other smart marketers and social media enthusiasts. Same topic, same place, just at different times – feel free to join whichever chat time works best for you!
4 pm AEDT (Sydney time)
9 am PT (San Francisco time)

This week’s stats:
Bufferchat #1 (4 pm AEDT): 28 participants; reach of 1,008,079
Bufferchat #2 (9 am PT): 92 participants; reach of 1,178,717
Q1: What are some of your personal or professional goals for 2018?
From the community:
A1.
Personal–having regular therapy sessions. This thing called life can be a bit much so I’m hoping to focus on my mental and emotional health this year.
Professional–I’m looking to apply and get accepted to an MBA program. Wish me luck! #bufferchat pic.twitter.com/WuUx4q6LCI
— Danielle (@AboutDanielle_) January 3, 2018
A1: Blogging weekly, because forces me to churn out new ideas constantly. As for my personal goal, I’m going to stop avoiding things that make me uncomfortable. ? #bufferchat
— Qistina (@qistinastudio) January 3, 2018
A1: my goal for 2018 is to write and send one letter a week as well as volunteer at least twice a month to be more connected to my friends, family and community #bufferchat
— Tricia Timney (@TriciaTimney) January 3, 2018
A1: We’re encouraging everyone on our team to be the best “you” that you can be in 2018. Stay focused and positive and we will grow together! #bufferchat pic.twitter.com/f1kgzt9Ssc
— MyCorporation (@MyCorporation) January 3, 2018
See all the great answers to question 1 here!
Q2: What’s your strategy for setting goals? Beginning of the year? As you go?
From the community:
A2: A colleague of mine wrote a great article titled “Screw Making A New Year’s Resolution. Just Pick A Word”. URL: https://t.co/4NdB2hajns. I would recommend checking it out as it talks about framing your year around 1 word rather than specific goals. #bufferchat
— Aleq Miller (@aleq_miller) January 3, 2018
A2 I like planning out my goals, monthly & daily. I reward myself when I achieve major goals & am mindful when I fall short #bufferchat pic.twitter.com/v98vJGSi5M
— ShereeseM, MS/MBA (@ShereesePubHlth) January 3, 2018
A2: I prefer to:
Think Quarterly
Plan Monthly
Act Weekly
Monitor Daily#bufferchat
— Bharat (@bharatpc) January 3, 2018
A2: Beginning of the year! Make S.M.A.R.T. goals. Write em, post where you can see them. Announce them to your harshest friends so they help hold you accountable. #bufferchat pic.twitter.com/5XgW44GK2h
— Chris Santiago (@Chris_Santiago_) January 3, 2018
See all the great answers to question 2 here!
Q3: Do you use any tools to track your goals?
From the community:
A3: We use @WorkFlowy along with good ole Excel. But, we’re always looking to improve our system. #bufferchat
— Rival IQ (@RivalIQ) January 3, 2018
A3: I use a combination of a bullet journal and @trello to track everything. A little tech mixed with analog suits me. #bufferchat
— Cassandra Schwartz ⭐ (@cssndrlnn) January 3, 2018
A3: Discovered the most amazing journal ever – @dailygreatness this is truly MY tool of the year to track goals! #bufferchat
— Areej AbuAli (@areej_abuali) January 3, 2018
A3: Oh hell yes! @Wunderlist for those checklists I mentioned, @Evernote for organizing helpful content, the slew of whiteboards around my house for reminding me to get shit done, & moleskin notebooks for those groundbreaking ideas. #bufferchat https://t.co/SqTkZ7P068
— Alex Burkart (@FelixSTL) January 3, 2018
See all the great answers to question 3 here!
Q4: How often do you check in on your goals?
From the community:
A4: Sometimes I honestly let them run free when I’m motivated and constantly in touch with them. About once a week I have an internal conversation: “Gen, what can YOU do to get where you want to be?” and that keeps me on track! I’m a huge promoter of self-talk! #bufferchat pic.twitter.com/01GqLKGaCS
— Geneva Hayward (@gen10hay) January 3, 2018
A4: Daily! I have different levels of goals, from major projects to smaller tasks that all build up to my Ultimate Goal. Every morning, I look at my daily “top 3.” I check in on quarterly goals weekly. #bufferchat
— Erin Sanchez (@candidlyerin) January 3, 2018
A4: ? I like reviewing them around the end of the month to see where I need to put more energies or where to slow down. Priorities will always change. It is a fact of life.
#BufferChat
— Raul Rovira ❄️ (@RaulARovira) January 3, 2018
A4: It depends, but I try to limit myself to once a week. I find checking too often can be disheartening because I’m impatient and want to see results YESTERDAY. #bufferchat pic.twitter.com/1OvroiefSH
— Felicity Wild (@flickwild) January 3, 2018
See all the great answers to question 4 here!
Q5: Do you tend to set huge goals or ones that you know are attainable? What makes them attainable?
From the community:
A5: I’m a fan of setting a destination off in the distance and knowing that each day, my attitude and actions can help me inch closer. And before I know it, I’m there! #bufferchat
— Ryan Easttum (@easttum) January 3, 2018
A5: Balance is key here. In my opinion, the more attainable the better as it will build your confidence in having a successful year. Then have 1 or 2 professional & personal huge goals to strive for. #bufferchat pic.twitter.com/geBnrobico
— Ben Campbell ❄️ ☃️ (@Ben_Soup) January 3, 2018
A5 I’d rather make 1000 small goals that I know lead towards something bigger than 1 or 2 big goals. Breaking it down task by task makes large things seem more attainable, and thus you’re less likely to put them off #bufferchat
— WTF ? Katie (@WeirdTrvlFriend) January 3, 2018
A5: This is personal to me (though I’m sure others are similar), but I like to set huge goals because I make more progress when I’m trying to hit them. Failing to hit an attainable goal means getting way less done. #bufferchat
— Laura Ferruggia ??? (@lauregg) January 3, 2018
See all the great answers to question 5 here!
Q6: Are there any books or articles on setting/attaining goals that have inspired you?
From the community:
A6: I love anything by @james_clear when it comes to goal-setting and habit formation. Brilliant insights. He’s my hero #bufferchat
— Salma Jafri ? (@salmajafri) January 3, 2018
A6: And one more @trello article that I loved – detailing how you can set your own personal OKRs for 2018! https://t.co/G3dB09AjaB #bufferchat
— juliestuckey (@JulieStuckey) January 3, 2018
A6: The Power of Habit by @cduhigg is a must read for January. Incredible insight on how the brain works and how you can stop bad habits and optimize good ones. #bufferchat
— Aaron Dunn (@aarondunnworks) January 3, 2018
A6: Might sound odd, but How To Win Friends and Influence People is a great book to read on setting and attaining goals. If anything, it highlights important goals for self growth. #bufferchat pic.twitter.com/Kj1tbh5NDK
— Brand Buddha (@brandbuddhist) January 3, 2018
See all the great answers to question 6 here!
Thank you so much to our awesome community for sharing such great insights in this chat!
Do you have any comments or answers to these questions? Leave your thoughts in the comments! We’d love to hear from you!
Image sources: UnSplash