Every year I share my annual goals on the Harlow blog, and halfway through the year, I share my progress against those goals. It’s my way of looping you all into my personal approach to goal-setting, which hopefully inspires you to find your own formula for success. As a personal bonus, the extra accountability motivates me to stay growth-oriented too.

This year, I’m taking my H1 reflection a step further. Rather than just sharing my progress update, I’m hosting a live event to walk you through the fundamentals:

• how I stay accountable to my goals
• how I use data to drive them
• AND how I shift direction & plans when needed to get back on track.

I hope this virtual event inspires you to gain clarity and momentum in the pursuit of your own goals.

This is all going down on Wednesday, August 13. Register here!

Now, onto this year’s update…

Revisiting my 2025 guiding words, phrases, and progress has been invigorating. Not to toot my own horn or anything, but I’m aligned and killing it. Looking back at my guiding word and phrase gives me goosebumps. I set goals at the beginning of the year and I’ve been marching toward them consistently. Where I’m not on track, I’m building a plan to get there. Where I am on track, I’m feeling the warm fuzzies. And I’m giving myself permission to deprioritize the things that no longer serve me or my higher goals (only a couple items here). Let’s get into it.

2025 Goals

High-Level Guiding Word(s): manifestation & self-empowerment

High-Level Guiding Phrase: If I want it, I can make it happen. I am in charge of my success physically, mentally, and financially.

Personal Wellness

Guiding Phrase: Treat my body well, and create the right spaces for me to thrive mentally and physically.

3-5 Goals:

1. Continue to go to 3-5 workout classes per week.
2. Build strength training into my fitness routine at least 1x/week.
3. Invest in at least one wellness home project to bring calm into my space (sauna, hot tub, cold plunge, new bath, etc.).
4. Fuel my body better. Be intentional with the meals I’m eating and the alcohol I’m consuming, but leave space for experiences and enjoying myself.
5. Spend more time taking in nature (walks to the water, hanging out outside).

Half-Year Update:

1. This entire section was thrown for a loop because of an injury, but I will say, prior to that injury I was going to 3-5 workout classes/week.
2. I was implementing strength training, but I went a little *too* hard and ended up hurting my back. Since then I’ve been leaning into gentler movement, consistently walking 4-5 days per week and doing at-home light lifting, yoga, and stretching. So I’m still taking care of my body, just more softly.
3. I have not invested in a new wellness home project *yet* but it’s been top of mind for me! I’m leaning heavily toward a sauna, and I’m craving it as I write this.
4. Luckily, I have a partner at home who makes eating well a priority so it’s easier for me to follow.
5. By shifting my workouts and weekly movement to walks, I shifted myself into outdoor mode. I’ve also been making it a priority to read and just hang more on my front porch in the warmer months. Lots of touching grass and letting the sun shine on me.

Relationships

Guiding Phrase: Protect my energy, while better supporting those closest to me.

3-5 Goals:

1. Protect my time and energy better. Say no more often.
2. Make the people closest to me feel like we’re on the same team, and like they are supported.
3. Release the desire to control other’s narratives.
4. Continue to set healthy boundaries with friends and family, based on my own needs.

Half-Year Update:

1. This is the perfect time for me to be re-aligning on this one. I feel like I’ve been a little burnt out lately socially (but alas, it’s summer and it happens), and this is a good reminder that my original intention was a slower pace. Going to revisit my calendar.
2. As far as making the people closest to me feel supported, I genuinely hope my friends and family would agree that I’m doing a good job.
3. THIS ONE has been huge for me this year. I have zero desire to know what strangers or anyone outside of my target audience thinks about my decisions, my social posts, or my business strategy. I’m feeling more aligned creatively with what I’m sharing and doing than ever before. If there are naysayers, they do not matter.
4. This has been a work in progress for years, but I can honestly say that every year I get better and better at maintaining and setting boundaries without guilt… or without too much prolonged guilt, at least. 😉

Money

Guiding Phrase: Get more creative and focused with the ways I’m generating revenue for Harlow and my consulting business. Make it a year of big outcomes. Save to fund future projects and initiatives.

3-5 Goals:

1. Hit $Xk annual income through all revenue streams.
2. Bring on a certified coach(s) to help support me as I build my plan for meeting my financial goals. This will help me add another layer of accountability and keep me in an abundance mindset.
3. Diversify the ways we’re helping people at Harlow and double down on the ways that are working.
   1. Launch Harlow events to help freelancers more confidently run their businesses.
   2. Launch Harlow “Freelance Kickstarter Package” to help freelancers launch their businesses. 
   3. Continue expanding and improving the ways we help freelancers land new clients.
   4. Broaden our owned audience. 
      1. Grow newsletter list from 6.7k to 25k.
   5. Broaden reach on social media. 
      1. Grow personal and Harlow social following from 35k to 75k. 
   6. Grow Harlow’s annual revenue to X. 
4. Redefine my consulting positioning and the type of projects I’m interested in taking on.
   1. Take on more independent projects. Ideas: office hours, smaller focused projects, teaching or speaking opportunities.
      
5. Put $X into savings.

Half-Year Update:

1. I am pacing to hit 80% of my overall revenue goal (Harlow + personal), but both Harlow and my consulting business have been ramping lately and I’m manifesting continued MoM growth into the second half of the year.
2. I brought on a coach and it has been GAME-CHANGING. I’m a coach myself, so I fully understand the benefit of bringing someone else into your business that has a shared interest in your success. If you want to dive deeper here about when, how, and why you might want to bring on a coach, I’m always up for the discussion (whether I’m the right fit for you or not).
3. Diversify the ways we’re helping people at Harlow and double down on the ways that are working.
   1. We did launch Harlow events! We’ve done ~4 events since the beginning of the year with more coming!
   2. My initial ideas around the freelance kickstarter package actually turned into the growth accelerator, which is cruising and killing it. It’s currently one of my all-time favorite offerings.
   3. We hit 10k newsletter subs, but we aren’t quite pacing to our goal. BUT I’ve got meetings and events on the calendar with the goal to ramp and scale.
   4. We’ve gone from 35k followers on social to 44k, but we aren’t quite pacing to our goal. This has honestly taken a bit of a backburner for me as I’ve been focused more on social selling than social reach, something I talk about often.
4. Harlow-specific revenue is pacing 65% to goal, but we have some BIG things coming up in H3 that will hopefully push us closer to target! Sponsors, events, new programs, oh my!
5. I have redefined and created new consulting and coaching offers and honestly, they are working! And they are mine. And I feel more aligned with these offers and who I’m helping than ever before!
6. Gotta be honest, savings hasn’t been as big of a priority for me as I outlined here, but I will kick it up on the priority list during the last half of the year. Not everything happens MoM.

Fun

Guiding Phrase: Be intentional with my travel, activities and energy.

3-5 Goals:

1. Visit 5 new places.
2. Visit two new countries.
3. Take at least two true vacations where relaxation is prioritized.
4. Prioritize time visiting nostalgic cities and seeing out-of-town friends and family.
5. Say no to more events, trips, and outings that don’t feel exciting or energizing.

Half-Year Update:

1. This year has been filled with epic travel memories. 5 new places already hit! Monterey, Seaside, OR, Barcelona, Montepulciano, IT, Republic, WA, Cassis, FR, the list goes on!
2. Added France & Spain to my list this year for the first time!
3. Relaxation, hmmm this is a good reminder. Excuse me while I quietly go book a beachside vacation. 😉 I’ve been indulging in a lot of busy trips up to this point, and now it’s time to turn a corner.
4. I’ve been to some of my favorite nostalgic places this year with some of my favorite people — Seattle, Whitefish, Las Vegas, San Diego, Napa.
5. This one is a good reminder! I’ve genuinely felt excited for everything I’ve participated in so far this year. But excitement can still lead to burnout, and I do probably need to slow my pace every now and then. Here’s me re-giving myself permission to do that.

Half-Year Reflection

I’m feeling motivated after reviewing my progress! I’ve come farther than I expected. And revisiting this list will help me realign on the 2025 goals I’ve deprioritized or fallen short on, like conserving my energy by saying no more often. Sometimes I hit the halfway mark and realize January me had wisdom and perspective that I’ve lost sight of in the ups and downs of daily life. But this year I really feel that I’ve held true to my vision. After some small priority tweaks, I expect to have an even more aligned 2025.

I hope this exercise offers you inspiration as you touch base on your own goals! I share it every year with the hope some of you will repurpose this annual reflection and goal-planning template to suit your own lifestyle and vision. There’s something magical about putting pen to paper and drafting goals each year, especially when we get to reward ourselves for our hard work come July and December. Again, if you want to learn how to execute this kind of strategy in your own life and business, don’t miss our Goal Accountability Workshop on August 13.

Wishing you a fulfilling rest of your year!