Listen to episode 19 on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, or Spotify.

In this episode, we talk about the second letter in the ROOTED acronym: Organically Growing Out of Your Context. You need goals that take your real life context seriously and embrace it. You need goals that connect with where you are right now, and that respect that you’re here for a reason. Recognizing the season you’re in and identifying the contours of your priorities can empower you to identify the next right step—the one that can realistically begin to build the lasting change you want to see.

Join us as we talk about why this is one of the most critical steps in setting ROOTED goals, a step that most other goal-setting systems completely ignore. We talk all about what this looks like in our lives and how embracing our context has empowered us to craft and execute meaningful goals year after year!

What does ROOTED stand for?

[R]ooted in Your Core Calling - Other goal setting systems start by asking what you want for your life. This system starts by asking how you're uniquely called as a disciple of Jesus to show up in the spaces of the world where He has placed you.

[O]rganically Growing Out of Your Context - Other goal setting systems tell you to close your eyes and imagine where you want to be in the next twelve months—dream big!—then hustle and grind to make that dream come true. This system encourages you to face the future with great hope, while at the same time rooting you in today's reality by helping you figure out a set of logical next-right-step goals for today's real life circumstances.

[O]utlined for Clarity - Other goal setting systems do encourage you to outline your goals for clarity—and there's a reason for this. Our brains crave step-by-step clarity. This phase is all about being specific about your goal and breaking them down into actionable steps.

[T]ailored to Your Lifestyle - Other goal setting systems might show you how to reverse-engineer your goals, but then end there and wish you good luck. This system shows you how to look at your goals in the context of your daily life, then make those strategic shifts in your schedule to make space for these goals. It also teaches you an incredibly powerful lifestyle-shaping skill called habit stacking.

[E]tched in Your Memory - This phase gives you the secret sauce for making progress on your important goals—even when things change. When you train your brain to care about your goals, your subconscious joins the team and starts looking for every reasonable opportunity for you to make progress on them!

[D]eveloped by Providence - The Kingdom of God does not rise and fall by the successes and failures of our goals. Knowing this gives us an incredible amount of liberty to simply follow the Lord's leading through the messy middle. Leading our lives with integrity and excellence is a deeply meaningful endeavor, and God loves to give us grace to do that. Having a Christian growth mindset allows us to set our goals with an "amen" posture towards God's unknown plans for the future, knowing that when we give our goals back to God, we can trust Him to develop them in the best of ways.