The Right Way to Set Goals

Goal setting is simple, but if you find that you're not achieving your goals, you may be approaching your goal setting strategy the wrong way. How many times do you find yourself setting a goal and just a few weeks later, you’ve either gotten too busy to reach it and it has moved down to the bottom of your priority list? If you’re tired of feeling like your goals aren’t being met, then you’re not setting goals the right way. When you set goals the right way, you’re going to see that you can reach them much more quickly and efficiently. You’re also going to feel even more satisfied when you accomplish the goal instead of feeling burnt out or exhausted. Below are six ways you can properly set your goals so that you're setting yourself up for success.

1. Decide on your outcome and why you want to reach it. Simply defining your goal is not enough if you really want to achieve it. You need to know why you want to reach it. When you kick in the emotional why, you’re going to be that much more motivated and empowered to get it done. When you really know why you want to do something, it becomes much more meaningful than a simple task on your to do list.

2. Ask yourself how would it feel to actually reach your goal? You want to visualize what it actually feels like to reach your goal. You can even meditate while visualizing this to really let it sink in. If meditation is hard for you, you can do an active meditation which means you're focusing and visualizing this while on a run or doing your favorite type of exercise. You want to make it a reality before it’s even happened. When you get into the zone of knowing what it feels like to accomplish it, it’s going to feel that much more possible and you’re going to reach it that much faster. You’ll spend less time wondering if it’s possible and more time getting the work done to get there. Come back to this visualization each day before you start working on your steps to reach the goal.

3. Create the steps to reach your goal. You want to create a step by step outline of what it’s going to take to reach your goal. When you break it out into these steps, there’s no questions of what you need to do next.You won’t waste time trying to decide what you should work on, which is a recipe for procrastination. This is especially gratifying when you are ahead of schedule and get to cross off more steps than originally planned. This is a great feeling to keep you feeling motivated.

4. Have someone hold you accountable. Accountability is key when it comes to accomplishing your goals. We’re all humans and we all could use a little accountability outside of ourselves. It’s much easier for us to convince ourselves out of something when no one else is affected or involved. The second that someone else knows, it’s much harder for us to back out. When you have an exciting new goal, text a friend or family member or post it on Facebook and Twitter. You don’t need to give the details, just simply say that you’re super excited to be working on a new project for xyz.

5. Celebrate each step you’ve made towards your goal. No matter how big or small the accomplishment, celebrate your hard work. When you check off a step, instead of thinking to yourself, I wish I could get there faster, tell you’re self great job and you’re excited that you’re getting things done. These little shifts seem minor, but in the grand scheme of things they make a tremendous difference.

6. Acknowledge the journey. When it comes to accomplishments, it’s not only about the destination. It’s about the journey. There is so much to be learned through achieving your goals. Make sure you have an appreciation for this. When you have an appreciation for the journey, you’re less likely to feel frustrated with how long it’s taking because you know you’re doing everything you need to do.