Principles of Goal Setting

To paraphrase a statement frequently made in motivational speeches, “If you don’t plan your life, someone else will plan it for you”. Too often, we act passively and let external forces shape our future.

Establishing and moving toward self development goals is a way of taking responsibility for ourselves. Proactive goal setting is a powerful strategy for dealing with life’s challenges.

Goal setting is a technique used by top achievers in all fields. It lets you look at the long term picture and gives you short term action steps.

• To give your life balance, try setting goals in some or all of the following categories: family; financial; career; artistic; attitude; health; social; educational.
  
  
• Assign priorities to goals in each of the categories. (Which goals are most important to you? Which do you want to work on first?)
  
  
• To be most effective, goals are written on different levels. Long term goals (25 years, 10 years, 5 years) give you a vision of where you want to go in your lifetime. Long term goals are broken into smaller and smaller targets as an action step ladder to success.
  
  
• Write down your goals. Include a target date.
  
  
• Goals should be specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and tangible. “Lose 5 pounds by July 15th” is better than “Lose weight over the summer”.
  
  
• Set goals which rely on your performance, not external factors. Set goals over which you have as much control as possible.
  
  
• Work your plan! Establish a to-do list with detailed action steps for achieving goals. Review your goals daily. Spend time visualizing how your life will change with each goal met. Ask yourself daily “Did I move closer to my goals today? How can I get closer still?”
  
  
• Take time to enjoy the satisfaction of achievement. Share your successes with others.