How To Set and Achieve Goals
How To Set and Achieve Goals
Life is a journey.
Not just any journey, but the most fantastic journey in the universe. Life is a
journey from where you are to where you want to be. You can choose your own
destination. Not only that, you can choose how you are going to get there. Goal
setting will help you end up where you want to be.
- When it comes to setting goals, start
off with what's important to you in life. Take out a sheet of paper. Sit
quietly, and on that sheet of paper, brainstorm what you want to
accomplish between now and the end of your life.
- Second step-use another sheet of paper,
and this time consider yourself and your personal goals for the next 12
month period. Some key areas in which you might set personal goals
include: family, personal growth, financial, health, social, career,
hobbies, spiritual, and recreation. Write down the things that you plan to
accomplish or achieve or attain during this one-year period?
- Now, as a third step, go back and
compare the two goal lists you have made. Make sure that the items on your
short-term list will, as you attain them, be helping you attain your
long-term or lifetime goals. It is important that what you are doing short
term is taking you in the right direction toward your lifetime goals.
Please rewrite your short term goals now if you need to.
- As a next step, looking at the goals
that are on your list at this time, if there are any that you are not
willing to pay the price for, go ahead and cross them out, leaving only
those items you are willing to cause to happen in your life. This does not
necessarily mean you have the money or the other resources for attaining
the goal right now. However, when you do have it, would you spend it on or
trade it for the goals you have on your list?
- Now, on still another sheet of paper,
create the job goals that are important to you during this upcoming
12-month period. Identify what outcomes you wish to attain or achieve
during this one-year period in your specific area of responsibility and
authority.
·
Some
key areas in which you might consider writing job goals, if you did not
already, include: quality, quantity, cost control, cost improvement, equipment,
procedures, training, sales, financial, and personnel.
- As a next step, look for the blending
between your job or work goals and your personal goals. Anywhere you
notice that you are attaining a goal on the job while at the same time you
are attaining a personal goal, note this relationship: it is in these
areas you will be most highly motivated.
- For each of the three lists that you
have just created, take an additional sheet of paper and list the
activities that you must do to attain the most important goal that you
have on each of your lists.
- Now on another piece of paper titled
"Things To-Do List" identify from the activities you just
listed, the ones that you must do tomorrow to move you toward your most
important goal.
- Rewrite your goals in these categories
at least every three months.
- The only thing in life that is constant
is the fact that everything is changing. It makes sense that our goals
will change as we change.
- Recognize how focusing on what you do
want, what you do intend to accomplish, also defines what you choose not
to do in your life.
- Daily rewrite your list of "Things
To-Do" after first reviewing your desired goals.
- Success is defined as "the
progressive realization of a worthwhile goal." If you are doing the
things that are moving you toward the attainment of your goal, then you
are "successful" even if you are not there yet.
- Every step along the way to achieving a
goal is just as important as the last step.
- It is not the achieving of a goal that
is so important, it is what you become in the process.
- Set goals with your family also. Help
children learn this process early in life.
- Decide what you should be accomplishing
and then stick to your knitting. Do not attempt to be or do all things for
all people.
- Dreams and wishes are not goals until
they are written as specific end results on paper.
- Written specific goals provide direction
and focus to your activities. They become a road map to follow.
- Being busy with activities does not pay,
only results do. As in baseball you only get points for getting to the
goal of home plate. Just making it to the bases does not count.
- It has been said that the amount of
information available to us is now doubling in less than 30 months. We
must learn to focus on only what is truly important to our self and our
job.
- Be sure the goals and activities that
you are working for are yours and that you really want and desire to
achieve them. The commitment is vital to your success in achieving them.
- When you have a goal that is exciting to
you, the life energy flows through you. You are excited about
accomplishing it because it is personally meaningful.
- Create a time line or matrix chart on
which you display your goals visually and the dates when you will have
them accomplished.
- Continually look for ways to integrate
or blend personal and professional goals.
- Setting a goal that you believe is
unattainable will result in frustration. To be challenging and motivating,
goals must be perceived as realistic and attainable.
- Those people with dreams are the ones
most likely to experience them.
- Set goals carefully for you will attain
them. This also means if you set none, you will attain that.
- Goals, when thoughtfully set, can
provide strong motivational direction.
- Clear cut, understandable and realistic
objectives leading to the goal help to maintain the sense of realism and
the hope of attainment of the goal.
- Establish measurement criteria to
monitor progressive movement toward your goal. Then you will experience
progress.
- Set goals that you will be proud to have
achieved, then sense your having completed them.
- Have a vision that you know is
unquestionably right and you will be internally driven to achieve that
vision.
- A goal is "reasonable" when
you can see the entire process needed to get to its attainment.
- Good planning assists in sensing
reasonableness of challenging goals.
- Use picture goals.
- Develop an emotional reason why you
should attain your goal.
Ken R Roys, President BTF Inc.
Ken.Roys@BTFmanagement.com
866-385-1900 Office 713-983-7904 Fax
WWW.btfmanagement.com