Claire, thank you for having the subtitles on your videos. My husband is deaf and autistic. And we really appreciate your subtitles.

Instead of goals - which seem daunting to me - I decided to start new routines. Routines seem doable and are not scary. And being autistic, I already embrace routines. So I am just adding more that will help me achieve long-term results.

I've learned to be careful when setting goals after a lifetime of high achievement. Followed by crashing and burning out when demands exceeded my carrying capacity. I became an architect and later an architecture professor because architecture and art was one of many of my "special" interests (passions) I was ill suited for either career. Too much stress in the architecture profession, too much petty politics and bureaucratic power games in academia. I didn't know I was autistic then. As far as making friends, well, that part's easy for me. I'm an extrovert. The problem comes with maintaining them. I either take too much initiative at first and drive them away with my intensity or I forget to follow-uop, don't know how, feel anxious about it, etc. Limerance plays a roll I think -I often feel intense "crush" like emotions when I meet someone new who I like. So does a lifetime of social bullying, missteps, and failures. Desperation sets in along with lonliness sometimes. I'm almost 60. Most friends in the past haven't been worth the trouble or heartache. Still, I keep stepping up to the plate, and taking fastballs to the head. It's the only way to get on base in the social game. It's a brutal game for NT people - 10x that for the autistic. It's ok to not play it. Take care when setting goals. Make sure they are serving you well, and make adjustments along the way. Above all else, keep trying new things until something works. Never give up.

I love it when a word I love gets lodged in my head and I have to use it a billion times. Today's word appears to be granular 😂

I'm currently tasked with looking at a big change at work and your advice about breaking down goals has helped switch on a light bulb in my brain! It's always so good to hear somebody else who is Autistic give advice as it always feels more doable. Thank You x

I was so excited to see the pink elephant watering can on your shelf!! I have one in grey, found it in a discount store about 15 years ago, and have it displayed with a pretty clump of fake pink peonies in it! 🌸🐘 I find your videos so calm and relaxing. I do struggle with balance in achieving goals- sometimes outside factors that I can’t control get in the way, and I blame myself for not anticipating them, or I’m not patient with myself when those factors drain my energy, and I’m resting in bed watching KZfaq instead of exercising or doing something creative… The goals that involve relationships are easier for me to focus on than the goals that only benefit myself. When the energy is there, I’ll reach out to the friend, but then I didn’t make time to draw, etc…

I love the idea of a theme word. I have not heard of the idea before, but it is brilliant. I am going to think of a theme word myself. 🤔 Self-Improvement is the first word that comes to mind. I know that is two word hence the dash joining them. You have been sooo inspirational to me today and you have enabled me to start my day off on the right foot ( although I am left handed🤫)

Hi Claire, Hi Everyone. I've always struggled to achieve goals. I make good progress with the goals I keep to myself, but if I tell anyone my goal, I fail every time--even when I've done wonderfully up to that point. So, I hesitate to share my goals, which makes me feel isolated. I really like the idea of a theme word for the year. A theme word would allow me to broadly share my focus for the year without revealing specifics. I choose Compassion as my theme word for 2024. Thank you for this video, Claire.

Word barf 😂 what a great phrase! I have never heard that before...

I enjoyed this video on my lunch break while eating my usual peanut butter and honey sandwich. Lol What I relate to the most, from what you said. Is i need to reach out to friends weekly. I can very easily forget other people and focus on things i want to do.

To further clarify what you're laying down here...There are two main kinds of goals that work in tandem. 1st are the Achievement-based goals. These are the big goals you set. Like your subscriber count goal, for example. The problem with achievement-based goals, on their own, is that there's no real way to place a timeline on them. It's a guess. They aren't quantifiable or directly measurable in a manner of which we have direct control. We can desire to add 1250 new subs in a month, but we can't just 'make that happen'. We can affect it but, at best, it is a wish. Think of this - Before the big game, both football teams have the same goal, right? They want to win. Both winners and losers have the same goal before the game. But there are variables we simply cannot control. The way we affect it is with Habit-based goals. This is the 'working towards...' stuff you mentioned. These are based on measurable 'tasks'. Like uploading X number of shorts or full videos per week. We can measure whether we do this or not. Did I reach my goal this week? It's a yes or no, lol. So, the way the goal types go together is working back from your Achievement-based goal with some (2+) habit-based goals that support it. Creating a tracking system of some manner. A spreadsheet, blocks to color in as you go, etc. Whatever works for you. Not only is it measurable this way, but we can review our progress and adjust as needed. I wish you a magnificent year of smashing all your goals, Claire. I'm so grateful to have found this community and an internet in you.💖

WOW, great ideas Claire for goals and objectives setting. Where possible I try and make all my goal SMART. By doing so it tells me exactly what I need to do to achieve them and when. I then aim to but these goals into my weekly routines. Like you I have set myself a number of fresh goals for this year. Some of which I am still doing well with a few others are taking me a little longer to programme in 🥳🥴Great advice you give. ☕

I don’t know how, but I didn’t discover new year goals before last year (I think?) 😂 New Year Goals is not something I personally do because I set small goals for myself throughout the weeks😊

Great tips! Thank you. I love the idea of starting with a "Word barf" (haha) with no rules. I often feel that I'm trying to be perfect in setting out goals right from the start, however I have so many different thoughts going on I get jammed up. I imagine that if I just get it all on the page with no structure, I can then workout the structure on the page, rather than try and work it all out in my head. Fantastic!

Hello. Watching Woodshed Theory Porch Coffee from 2 weeks ago. I appreciate your KZfaq videos. I was diagnosed with ADHD and now I am realizing that what Dr.s explained away as Bi-Polar or Trauma is actually undiagnosed Autism. I love your hair color. It's beautiful and perfect for this time of year. Have a wonderful day and stay safe and warm.

Good luck Claire.

This is very helpful Claire, Thank you😊

I love your theme for this year.

I thought I was good at this, but you've given me some new ideas, so looking forward to the next video! BTW I love that you respond to our comments (but have always wished there were so many that it was impossible) 🙂

I'm struggling to keep up with videos this week. My goal for this year is just to survive and be happy. I think my responsibilities are kind of weighing on me lately. I think finding more time for self care somehow will be a goal, too. Thanks for sharing with us!

I never make yearly goals. If I did, I'd feel like a horrible failure if I didn't succeed at them. I also sometimes have issue breaking down general things into reasonable tasks. They just seem so overwhelming and I don't know where to start. When I get overwhelmed I tend to curl up and not want to do anything and feel like a failure. 😅 People have told me to make checklists... but they get so long that I get overwhelmed by all the things I need to do and shutdown. I do make mental checklists for the day like: Need to wait for Mom to call, then I make brunch, then I watch youtube while eating brunch, then I need to go out and shovel snow... after that I need to get my daily writing done at some point.... but I'll figure that out after I get back inside and since I don't know how long shoveling will take. Every time I try to do something like exercise every day... something will happen like I start get migraines or put my knee out while hanging laundry and can barely walk for weeks... something always happens that gets in the way. (deletes long story about 2023...) My immediate goal is to stop watching youtube videos, now that I ate brunch, and go outside and shovel my walkway and driveway since it's been snowing for hours and not stopping until sometime tonight. I hope all your goals for the year go well.

Claire I have shared your video on X ( formally known as Twitter). Do you have a presence on X. If not I am sure having one will complement your KZfaq channel well, and bring in new subscribers who will benefit from your work.

Setting goals is always a good start toward enacting positive changes. X-Cellent video Ms. Claire. - Civil ☮🎩

Thank you for the break down in doable steps. I like the intentionality focus for 2024 that I may adopt 😊 I'll be sure to use it more as a compass than a demand that could turn my brain upside down. Btw have you ever thought about voice acting bc your speaking and singing are both very pleasant.

Thanks, Claire. Very helpful video! You mentioned grace as a past word. Well, going forward, that fits for me. I struggle majorly to give it to myself. I have a tendency to make big goals and then spiral the moment even one thing slightly fails, usually shaming myself and escaping back into my personal cave for a long while after, vowing to do no more. It's pretty self-defeating. This go-around, I am trying to not pile the pressure on so much, but breaking everything down into more managable bites, leaving room for days that clearly are just not going to get there. Hoping this will keep me taking steps in the right direction. Also shunning the comparison game and learning to value what I can uniquely bring to the table.

I love what you shared and how you yourself go about it! I also love the addition of a theme/word. The gears in my head have started turning for myself, and I really love quotes and find they help me when I need guidance, so I'll be attaching one of those to my goals this year. Thanks for laying out how you do it! Seems less daunting now for myself to tackle my own goals for the year 😊

Thanks for the tips!

In general the first step for most things is some sort of mindmap/brainstorm/word barf about the topic. If it's something simple or you already know how to do it, you can skip that step, but for anything else, it's worth getting all that out on paper and possibly doing a dress rehearsal if there's stuff you think you'll need.

This is a very good video! I definitly should sit down and write my goals and break them down. Thanks Claire💛

I'm just now thinking about my goal-setting for this year. It has been an extremely rough start so far. Better late than never! Right? I was originally going to keep my same theme word from last year, "mindful". It didn't work out that well for me. After watching your video I think I'm going to change it to "grace" - for myself and others. You just mentioned it in your list and it really stuck with me. I might also have theme words (or sayings/quotes) for each month though.

Yeah great video. The only thing I really have to is add don't be afraid to make a goal smaller, I've commented this on one of your other videos as well. It's similar to breaking a goal down. If I think I'm not going to be able to reach a goal I make the goal smaller. Or cut it into pieces. I don't really do general goals but very specific ones. I need to stay on track and a general goal doesn’t not help me with that. I also don't believe in new years resolutions it seems those just get broken en that’s not helpful for me.

Your pushing me with your eyes. Got any ghost stories....

Hi... I have a question completely unrelated to the topic of the video... But first I think in order to answer my question... I think I need to share some things: I have had a hard life... Not only as an autistic individual but also being poor... My special interest for 23 years that has always been a source of energy and I have always loved talking about it and loved doing it so much so that it kinda became my life and passion... I love video games and music... I taught myself how to beatbox recently about two or three years ago... And I've played games since I was 3 years old... I have a vast library of games and music that I like (including game controls) in my head... I've always been confused about what I really feel in the moment... My facial expression tends to be flat and doesn't look like what I really feel... I don't know what I feel RN... I don't know why but playing a game or hearing music (especially what I love) doesn't feel enjoyable anymore... Now it feels like work even though I'm not getting paid for it... I used to be able to spend 24 hours on a game without even realizing that a single hour has even passed... But now I can't even sit through it for 30 minutes of real time and music just feels numb and boring too!.. I don't understand why... And it's eating me alive! I have zero energy... I have nothing I seem to enjoy... I'm unemployed... There's no money coming in for the household... I keep thinking that it'll pass, but it's been a month and a half... This never happens during burnout... I always found the idea of being a gaming KZfaqr would be a fantastic thing to do with my life given the fact that I loved games and I haven't played them all... But now I run out of energy just thinking about picking up the controller... I don't know what is wrong with me... In the past I never wanted to put it down but now I can't pick it up... It's not just the special interest either... Things I have thought about learning as an alternative that I used to be interested in learning just don't have the same feelings tied to them as when I thought about them... For instance I love the sound of the deepness of the electric bass... I have one in the living room!.. I never learned it because I didn't have time to... But now I have time to and I don't want to... I feel numb and I don't know why... I feel like a shell of a human like being hollow... Even though I am looking for a job I don't understand why when I am not filling out apps I can't do anything... I feel so tired and I try to be optimistic and positive but I always fall to a funk... My last goal was to be a gaming KZfaqr and it was my goal for 10 years or more... And it never happened but I always still tried to get there even when the bills and everything took all the money... I always thought I would one day get where I wanted to be after I saved the money for the cheapest equipment to start with... I never got the equipment due to the cost of living and trying to help out friends when they need it... Now that dream doesn't carry the same joyful emotional weight it did before... That scares me because nobody should have to "give up" on a dream if it's what they want. I don't know... I've been typing for a while now... Oops... I guess my question is: what are your thoughts on this problem I am faced with? Do I need help? Edit: OMG... I didn't realize it was that long of a comment!.. sorry...

New sub here:>

Goals are a very stressful experience for me. I have been able to meet many of my goals with friendships and a relationship. But I have failed every educational/work goal since graduating highschool. I am 48 so that is a lot of failure. I have a goal of starting a KZfaq channel but I feel doubt about it. I grew up without computers and am not technologically inclined. I get frustrated easily with technology. I am also worried about oversharing especially on my own channel. Those are my worries. The positives is it is something that I can do from home since I have a chronic physical illness as well. The other positive is I have I believe I have something to share with the world as an artist and as a person who has lived with many disabilities. I have been through a lot of treatment and think I could be a positive force in the world.

I have green eyes to. I think they are green. Lovely. , I am learning about what my mask are and understanding why I isolate and I could relate to someone when they said that the older they got the more difficult it was to keep their mask up because it is exhausting. I see my son now as I learn about this stuff. We have the nuerodivergent gene. I think I understand him much better now aswell. I confused Autism and ADHD with a narcissistic personality disorder hopefully. We have been having problems. He's an adult son. Then I saw recently that Nuerodivergent people trigger eachother sometimes. Totally makes sense and is almost funny. Gotta laugh ya know. Anyway?, I do not have my reading glasses on so hopefully I am not making to many typos. I started researching cancer, heart disease, metabolic disorders, quick ways to reverse or began to fight them prior to medical treatment etc and lost like 70 lbs total.. I completely changed my diet and I destroyed the metabollic syndrome that I had by losing weight through intermittent fasting and fasting to the point of Autophagy that is when good cells eat bad cells in our bodies. Anyway then I went into research abut everything ADHD and I had no idea but, I have learned a great deal and now I am here learning about this because I am about 100 % sure that I am autistic. I have sensitivity to light, noise and smells. I thought it was from PTS for a long time. I do not think so now. I am certain that CPTSD did intensify the sensitivity but it was always there. I had no idea.

Also, Bilrun (Alby is taken 😂)

what zodiac sign are you?

If you can no longer answer every comment you could make it a goal to answer X number of comments a day or a week. Or answer them for X number of minutes?