Have you thought about what you want to be doing in 5 or 10 years’ time? Are you clear about your objectives and goals and the future of your career or business? Do you know precisely what you will achieve by the end of the day?
If you want to succeed as an entrepreneur, an employee or a student, you need to set goals and work at achieving them. Goal setting is imperative because it allows to take control of your life and provides you a benchmark for determining whether you are headed in the right direction.
It is, therefore, very important to learn how to set your goals. Goal setting is not an act of wishful thinking. Goal setting is a conscious and proactive effort of laying down you plans and working towards their realization. For instance, you can’t simply say ‘I want to start a business’ and expect it to happen. Goal setting is a process that starts with a careful examination of what it is you really want to achieve and working hard to make sure you actually do it. In between, there are very specific things that you need to do. Knowing what to do to achieve your goals can help you accomplish your goals. In this article, we look at 5 golden rules of goals setting which you can apply.
The Five Foolproof Golden Rules of Goal Setting
1. Set Goals that Stimulate You
When you write your goals, it is important that you set goals that stimulate you. In other words, the goals should be important to you; they should have some value attached in achieving them. If you set irrelevant goals that will not make any meaningful change in your career or business even if you achieve them, you will not have the motivation to work towards achieving the goals. Motivation is critical when setting and achieving goals.
Priority is the key
In order to do so, you should set goals that are high priority in your life. Setting too many goals is not a good idea because you might end up achieving none. You need to focus on very few, important goals and give them all the focus you’ve got. That way, you will have time to achieve them. You also need to give priority to goals that have high probability of success. You need to feel a sense of urgency and purpose when setting goals. You need to have an “I Must Achieve This” attitude. Setting impossible goals or goals that are not important will lead to failure and disappointment. The ripple effect is that you might end up not setting and achieving more goals in future. This can end up killing your self-esteem and motivation. Take heed, achieving goals is a habit which you must cultivate by setting important and achievable goals and making sure you work hard at achieving those goals.
Tip:
To ensure that your goal is motivating and important, write down the reasons you think it is important and valuable to you. Ask yourself this question: “How will attaining this goal improve my life and make a successful person?” you can always use this to gauge whether the goals you are setting are worthwhile. Remember, setting too many goals is not the best idea. Set few but meaningful goals and leave the rest.
2. Set SMART Goals
Have you ever heard the acronym SMART in goal setting? Well, SMART simply stands for five elements of goals. Your goals should be:
- Specific.
- Measurable.
- Attainable.
- Relevant.
- Time Bound.
Set Specific Goals
Set clear and well defined goals. Don’t set generalized, vague and unclear goals because you might never attain them or you might never know when you actually attain them. Non-specific goals don’t provide you with sufficient direction. The reason we set goals is so that we know the way. For instance, if you set a goal like “I want to increase profit,” you are simply being vague. It can be very confusing even to your employees what they really need to do to increase profit. Instead, say “I want to increase profits by 40% through improved social media marketing.” Make it very specific so that you know the exact direction you need to take in order to arrive at your destination.
Set Measurable Goals
Measurable goals are quantified; they can be measured. You should be able to measure the degree of success of your achievement. You need to know how far you have gone in terms of trying to achieve your goals.
Set Attainable Goals
Your goals should be possible to attain. Do not set a goal you know it will be hard to achieve because you will only demoralize yourself. However, you should avoid the urge to set very easy goals that you don’t have to work hard to attain. Setting goals that will not require you to work hard can be unfulfilling and might make you lazy in future. By setting realistic challenging goals, you are able to hit the challenge you need and at the same time, you will gain more confidence in going for more challenging goals in future. It will bring you the greatest personal satisfaction.
Set Relevant Goals
Goals should be congruent to your life’s ultimate aim. All your goals should be aligned to the direction you want to take so that you remain in the right direction. For example, you can’t say ‘I want to become the president of a pharmaceutical company when you are a pilot.” The easiest way to fritter your time and life away is to set broadly dispersed and inconsistent goals.
Set Time-specific Goals
Goals that don’t have deadlines are not goals. The very definition of a goal is a plan you intend on executing within a specified period of time. When you are working with the sense and urgency, you increase your chances of achieving your goals.
3. Set Goals in Writing
Many people make the mistake of setting goals without actually writing them down. The consequence is that they fail to attain their goals and wonder what went wrong. By physically writing your goals down, you are making them real and tangible and every time you look at that piece of paper where you have written the goals, you are reminded of the fact that something awaits your action. It stays fresh in your mind. Written goals have power. They aren’t forgotten and they become real.
Tip 1:
Be positive when setting your goals. Avoid negative goals. For example, instead of saying “I will reduce my employees turnover next quarter,” say something like “I will hold on to my existing employees.” This way, you are able to focus on the positive aspects of your goals instead of being negative.
Tip 2:4. Make an Action Plan
Create a To-Do list that has your most important goals at the top. Post your goals in visible places to remind yourself everyday of what you need and intend to do. Remember the saying: out of sight, out of mind. Place your goals on your walls next to where you work on a daily basis, bathroom, computer monitor, bedside or desk for constant reminder. Do not trust your memory too much.
Setting goals without an action plan is the same thing as day dreaming. Goals mean nothing unless one practically executes them; otherwise they remain in dreamland. Make actionable steps on how the set goals can be achieved. By writing your goals, laying down the action plan and crossing those goals that have been achieved, you will see yourself making meaningful progress.
5. Stick With It!
Goal setting is not a means to an end. Instead, it is a process. Goals act as guideposts to our destiny and not as tools we should discard. You should make regular time-slots to review your goals, make adjustments and remind yourself of the need to stick with your goals. Even if your goals are challenging, try to stick to them so long as they are important and relevant to you. The only reason you should change your goals is if your general direction in life is no longer congruent with your goals.
Setting goals is more than simply pronouncing wishful statements. You need to clearly know what you want, how you want it, when you want it, what you will use to achieve it and who will help you achieve it. You goal should be important and relevant to you. By following the five golden rules of goal setting, you will be increasing your odds of success.
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