Setting goals is something that we've all tried at some point, myself included. How often do we not achieve those goals? Achieving our goals is about setting them the right way. This is a process that I'm personally going through as well so let's work this through this together.
Often you hear about setting SMART goals: specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-bound. I really like this but I think with goals it needs to be more personable and related to why we want to achieve them. We start with the SMART method and add more.
There are two steps when it comes to goals: setting your goal and then planning on how you will achieve that goal. Let's start with setting our goal.
Write down your goal. Make it specific. For example I want to lose 10 kilograms. Be being specific you give yourself a way of measuring your goal. Is it weight lost? Distance run? Money saved? Then we need to think about whether our goal is attainable. Can I realistically do it? You don't want to set a goal and then find that it is impossible.
The next big step is knowing your why. Why is this goal important? How will my life be different when I achieve this goal? How will I feel when I achieve this goal? When we actually stop and think about the emotional reasons for doing something and the emotions we feel when we achieve it, it helps us to keep going when times are tough. It's the motivation on the days when we just don't want to do it.
Don't let this step get you down but we're going to work out all the things that might stop us from achieving our goal. Once we know what could stop us, we can figure out what we're going to do to overcome them. For example you're wanting to lose weight but have a sweet tooth. What are healthy sweet options that you can replace them with? Sweet tooth still not satisfied, what will you do now?
Our goal is nearly set. We're now going to find someone who is going to keep us accountable. Who do you know that can support you on this journey and keep you on track? If we have someone to keep us accountable for our actions we're closer to achieving our goals.
Now that we've got our great, actionable goal in front of us we're going to plan how we're exactly going to achieve this. We're going to set ourselves a start and finish date. Have you noticed that it's when the assignment has a due date we're more likely to get it done in time? Once again, we need to be realistic with our finish date.
What exactly are we going to do to achieve our goals? It could be exercise, eating better, signing up for that course, etc. It's anything you can do that will get you closer to your goal. Is it something that needs to be done daily, weekly or monthly? If it's a specific event, put a date next to it.
If losing weight is one of your goals then maybe a food journal will help.
We've got our goal and we've got our plan, there's nothing left to do but to act. Keep track of all the steps that you have taken. Celebrate your wins. Plan your reward for achieving your goal. You can do it. Don't give up.
