January is a giant do-over month. Like most families, we figure out where we dropped the ball last year and set simple goals improving in the moths ahead. All of the sudden things like finishing a personal progress goal, logging miles on the treadmill or just finding the toy room floor seem like they might be do-able.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned over years and years of family goal-setting, it’s that if a goal is not planned (and shared) will not succeed. It’s not enough to just think about what we want to accomplish. We need to break it into smaller steps and put the plan on paper. And in our case, we need that paper to be in a spot where the whole family will see it everyday…in other words, the fridge. 🙂

A simple printable tracker for family goals

Generally we fill this out during FHE. Everyone shouts out a few big yearly goals and then we help them break them down into 6 or 8 week chunks. We chat about the common reasons we fail and then brainstorm on ways we can fight those temptations before they pop up.

Here’s a sample of some simple goals your family might set.

Every week or two we bring the printable into FHE and check our progress. If you completed your goal before your deadline you get to cross it off and post it on the fridge for all the other family slackers to admire. This mini-victory also generally involves a trip to the gas station for a celebratory slushy. 🙂

Once most of the goals are crossed off, we print a new sheet and start all over. Some goals carry from one sheet to the next but most progress over the course of the year.

It’s not a fancy system, but that’s the beauty of it. It’s totally do-able. Whether you have little kids, teenagers or older kids starting their own families, this printable will help you move forward as a family. It naturally encourages you to support each other and celebrate success together. Best of all, it’s totally free.

You can find the free printable below or click here to download the high-res version or click here for the pdf. The trendy, water-color styled prints can be printed at home or sent to your favorite photo lab (like Costco or Sam’s Club). Enjoy!

Maria Eckersley

This guest post was submitted by Maria Eckersley. Maria is a stay-at-home mom of six by day and a sleep-deprived graphic designer by night. You can find more of her ideas and printables on her new site MeckMom.com.