How to Do a Yearly Couples Planning Retreat (+ Free Worksheet!)
For the past 5 years, my husband and I have held a yearly couples planning retreat.
We take a day at the beginning of the year, away from our regular schedule and atmosphere to plan our goals, together.
Not only do we look forward to the time together, distraction-free, but it has also been an important part of our success and bond.
If you want to reduce your overwhelm while focusing on getting more of the right things done, you already know planning ahead for the year is key. This focus helps you break down the steps to achieving your goals while allowing yourself to dream big and open up new doors.
By introducing planning as a couple, we’ve found the secret sauce to accelerate these yearly goals. By planning together, you’ll build a stronger partnership and ensure you’re both creating a life you truly love.
Your Yearly Couples Planning Retreat
At the beginning of each year (or whenever you discover this article… because planning doesn’t have be reserved for the New Year) schedule a retreat with your spouse to make a plan for your year.
Changing your environment can do wonders for creativity and focus.
Take a day or weekend away—perhaps at a local coffee shop, a short staycation, or even a weekend retreat to a nearby town. Being away from distractions helps both of you focus on the big picture and plan without the usual stressors of daily life.
Yes, this is a little like running your relationship like a business retreat…but the results can be mind-blowing. Planning your year and setting goals together in a structured way will strengthen your relationship and help you support one another while you chase your dreams.
Why Planning Your Goals Together is Crucial
Whether you’re tackling career milestones, financial goals, or simply making time for fun, this yearly planning retreat will help reduce conflict and increase your happiness as you create a shared vision for your life.
During this planning retreat, you and your spouse will discuss what you want to accomplish as a team as well as learn about each other’s personal goals.
By sharing your individual aspirations, you open up a conversation about how you can best support one another. This will help you avoid potential conflicts during the year while boosting the chances of success with your endeavors.
For example, let’s say one partner has an ambitious promotion goal while the other plans to focus on their health for the year. By knowing this upfront, you’ll both have a better understanding of where you may run into scheduling clashes or where small gestures could go a long way. You could plan to take over household chores while your spouse works a few more hours on a big work project. Or skip adding the cookies to your shopping cart because you know your spouse is trying to avoid sugar.
These small gestures and proactive coordination can go a long way to creating an environment of success for both of you.
How to Plan Together
First, download your free planning template then use the steps below to build a plan together.
Keep in mind your discussion points and goals should include all aspects of your life and relationship:
Career: What are each of your professional aspirations? Is there an opportunity for one or both of you to take on more responsibility, change careers, or work on skill-building?
Finance: What financial milestones do you want to hit this year? This might include saving for a house, planning for retirement, or taking a vacation together.
Relationships/Connection: This is where you focus on the health of your relationship. What can you do to deepen your connection? Whether it’s more quality time together, better communication, or just laughing more, make these goals a priority.
Health: Physical and mental health are crucial for well-being. What are your fitness goals, eating habits, and mental health priorities? Perhaps you want to prioritize workouts, get enough sleep, or incorporate more mindfulness into your routine.
Fun: Life isn’t all work and responsibilities. Don’t forget to plan for fun! What are the things that bring joy and fulfillment? This could mean travel, hobbies, or exploring new adventures on your own or with your spouse.
Step 1: Reflect on the Past Year
Before diving into the new year’s plans, take a moment to celebrate your wins and successes, setbacks and disappointments, and any lessons learned.
This reflection phase gives you clarity and a better understanding of where you’re coming from, making it easier to set more meaningful and realistic goals for the upcoming year.
I also love to identify your favorite moment of the previous year. This can be enlightening in determining what you might want more of.
Finally, as part of this reflection, it’s helpful to take stock of how you feel about your relationship. Have you been spending quality time together, or have work and life got in the way? This will help keep relationship goals top of mind to create a stronger foundation for the year ahead.
Step 2: Dream Big, Then Break It Down
Now it’s time to set some goals.
First, dream big. Discuss your wildest, maybe even a little unrealistic goals. First, what do you want in 10 years? Then, what do you hope to have accomplished in 5 years? These longer-term dreams help you understand where you’re headed as a couple.
Once you know longer-term aspirations, break it down further: What do you want to have accomplished in the next year to get closer to those bigger dreams?
Again, make sure you’re thinking about all areas of your life when setting these dreams and goals.
By considering your 1-year, 5-year, and 10-year goals, you’ll find that each step builds on the previous one. Your 1-year goals will serve as stepping stones to your 5-year goals, and the 5-year goals will get you closer to your 10-year goals.
I love discussing this dream big goals frequently because it helps eliminate comments that seem to come from “out of nowhere” (such as when your partner mentions something like they want to buy a farm in Hawaii and live off the land.) Chances are this crazy dream will have already been revealed in your together planning. So you’ll be on the same page about where this fits in the broader picture, instead of just thinking your spouse may have bumped their head a little too hard...
Step 3: The What and the Why: Clarify Your Motivations
When setting your goals, take time to consider not only what you want to achieve, but why you want it.
Is it a feeling you’re seeking, an experience, or maybe a physical object you’d like to have?
For example, let’s say you have a goal to buy a house. Decide why you have this goal. Is it so you can create a stable environment that makes you feel safe? Is it so you can fell like you accomplished a big goal of saving enough money to make the purchase? Or is it more about having a home you’re excited to show off?
When both partners understand the deeper motivations behind each other’s goals, it makes it easier to support one another.
Step 4: Comparing and Aligning Your Goals
Once both of you have reflected on the previous year and written down your individual goals, it’s time to come together and compare notes.
How does your assessments of the previous year align? Where do your goals overlap and where are there differences? This conversation will help you determine which goals are worth focusing on.
Make a list of which of your 1-year goals should be prioritized for the upcoming year. Keep in mind balance across all categories of your life while being willing to compromise.
Once you have a list of shared goals for the year, it’s time to plan for action.
Step 5: Create a Quarter 1 Action Plan
Now that you’ve aligned your goals, create an action plan for the next 3 months (i.e. the next quarter.)
This step helps break your goals into more manageable chunks, set realistic timelines, and assign ownership for each piece so nothing gets dropped.
Just focus on the first quarter for now. You’ll plan other quarters throughout the year during Quarterly Check-ins (see below).
Focusing on a quarter at a time means you can adjust course throughout the year while still maintaining your momentum. It also gives you some milestones to consider during your weekly planning practice.
Tips for Success
Your year is planned and you’re ready to go!
Here are a few tips to keep the communication and strong relationship going throughout the full year so your yearly planning retreat doesn’t go to waste.
Quarterly Check-ins: Schedule quarterly check-ins to assess progress, celebrate wins, and plan for the next quarter. This keeps you both accountable and helps you stay connected to your goals.
Share Your Digital Calendar: To stay in sync, share your calendars with each other. Knowing what’s on each other’s schedule allows for better planning and coordination of your time and understanding where your spouse is with their own goals.
Make it Fun: Find a way to make achieving your goals more fun. Our new tradition is to buy a few mini bottles of champagne. We write our top goals on each bottle. Then, as we achieve our goals throughout the year, we pop the champagne and celebrate!
Spend More Time Together: With your relationship a top focus, you likely have some goals to spend more time together. Try out these 10 simple ways to spend more quality time with your partner.
Free Planning Template: Don’t forget to download your free planning template to guide you through your own yearly couples planning retreat.
The Power of Planning Together
Planning your year together is a power couple move.
You’ll not only achieve more, but you’ll inevitably strengthen your relationship as well.
With clear communication, shared goals, and a commitment to supporting each other, you can tackle big challenges and celebrate big successes together.
By the end of the year, you’ll not only have made significant strides toward your goals but will have built a closer, stronger partnership along the way.
With two of you against the world, there’s nothing you can’t accomplish!
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About Me
Hi, I’m Kara. I’m a former workaholic turned time-management expert. I help women stressed out in their 9-5 get more done, in less time, so they can get back in the driver’s seat and start living a life they love.
