25 spiritual goals examples, short and long term, for any faith or none

Spiritual goals examples, short and long term

These examples count the days you show up, from 30 days to a whole year, and you can fill each one with the practice of your own faith, or of none.

• Spend 10 minutes in prayer, silence or reflection every morning for 30 days.
• Keep one day of rest a week for 12 weeks.
• Give up one thing you choose for 40 days, and mark each day you keep to it.
• Keep a daily practice of your choice on 300 days this year.
• Walk at least the last 100 km of the Camino de Santiago, the distance its pilgrim office asks for on foot.

Prayer and sacred reading goals

Prayer goals count days and set times, and reading goals take one portion a day, which is how a one year reading plan becomes a 365 day challenge.

• Pray at the times your tradition sets, every day for 30 days.
• Follow a one year Bible reading plan and tick each of its 365 days.
• Read one part (juz) of the Quran each night of Ramadan.
• Read the weekly Torah portion every week for a year.
• Read one chapter of the Bhagavad Gita a week until you reach the end.

Spiritual goals that are not religious

Spiritual goals without a religion use silence, the outdoors and attention. Sitting still has a list of its own in meditation goals, and tending plants, as in gardening goals, is quiet time outside with something to care for.

• Spend 20 minutes outside with no phone, 3 times a week for a month.
• Watch the sunrise or the sunset once a week for 12 weeks.
• Spend one whole day offline each month for 6 months.
• Sit in silence for 10 minutes before bed for 21 nights.
• Write down your 5 core values, then note one choice that kept to them every Sunday for 12 weeks.

Gratitude and reflection goals

These goals end the day with a few words, which is why a gratitude or prayer journal suits them. There are ideas for keeping one in journaling goals.

• Say or write one thank you at the end of each day for 30 days.
• Write one thank you note a week to a different person, for 10 weeks.
• End each day with 3 questions for 21 nights: where was I kind, where was I not, what will I try tomorrow.
• Write a prayer, a wish or a hope for someone else each day for 2 weeks.
• Read back your notes on the 1st of each month and write down one thing that grew, for 6 months.

Service and community goals

Service goals count hours and visits, which makes them the easiest spiritual goals to measure.

• Volunteer 50 hours this year. That is about one hour a week.
• Go to a weekly service or gathering 40 times this year.
• Visit an older neighbour once a week for 2 months.
• Help at a food bank or a shared meal once a month for a year.
• Do one quiet act of kindness for someone every day for 2 weeks.

What is a good spiritual goal?

A good spiritual goal is a practice you can show up for, not a feeling you have to reach. You cannot decide to feel close to God, or at peace, on a given Tuesday. You can decide to pray, read, rest or help someone for 10 minutes. A review of 35 years of goal research found that specific, hard goals lead to higher performance than being told to do your best. "Grow in faith" is a direction. "Pray 10 minutes every morning for 30 days" is a goal.

A practice holds better when it hangs on something you already do. "After I pour my coffee, I read one page" is habit stacking, and a prayer before a meal works the same way. Give it time: one study found that a new daily habit took a median of 66 days to become automatic, with a range from 18 to 254, and that missing one day did not undo it.

Pick the practice of your own tradition, or one with no religion in it. The count works the same for a rosary, a prayer at set times, a weekly day of rest or a walk at dawn. If giving something up means fasting from food, talk to a doctor first if you take medicine or have a health condition.

How to track spiritual goals

Tick the day once the practice is done. A review of 138 studies found that people who monitored their progress reached their goals more often, and that recording it beat keeping it in your head.

Nearly every goal on this list is a day count: you prayed, read, rested or sat in silence today, or you did not. Hours of service and pages read are amounts that add up.

Do not score how the day felt. A short, distracted prayer counts the same as a long one. A window that fills one pane for every day you show up keeps the count, and leaves the meaning to you.

Frequently asked questions

What are some spiritual goals examples?

Pray or sit in silence for 10 minutes every morning for 30 days. Keep one day of rest a week. Follow a one year reading plan for a sacred text. Volunteer 50 hours in a year. Say one thank you each night.

What are spiritual goals that are not religious?

Time outside with no phone, one day offline each month, 10 minutes of silence before bed, and service to others. Writing down your values and checking your choices against them is another. They use the same tools as a faith practice, without a creed.

What are short and long term spiritual goals?

Short term goals run from a week to 40 days, like 10 minutes of quiet each morning for 30 days. Long term goals run a year, like a one year reading plan, 50 hours of service or a pilgrimage walk. A short one is a good way to test the long one.