Stop Procrastinating – Start Achieving Your Goals – Goal-Setting
Stop Procrastinating - Start Achieving Your Goals
It has been said that 60-80% of New Year's resolutions will be broken within the first two weeks. In other words, a lot of people have a hard time making the changes in their life they want to make. So you are not alone. Personally, I am not a huge advocate of New Year's resolutions because I believe in setting and achieving personal goals all year around. That being said, I wanted to share with you the top ten ways to increase the likelihood for success with achieving your goals.1. Stick to 1 or 2 important goals.Having a laundry list of all the things you would like to change in your life can be overwhelming. Your chances for success are much higher if you stick to 1 or 2 of your most important goals. This allows you to concentrate all your energy and focus on these goals. Once you achieve those goals, you can always set 1 or 2 more.2. Be realistic.It's okay to think big and want the best, but it is more important to succeed, so be realistic. Ask yourself whether or not your goals are reasonable and possible. It is probably not realistic to set the goal of never yelling at your kids again. How will you feel about your resolution when your children test you on a very bad day and you yell? Certainly one can cut back on yelling and work to find alternative ways to deal with misbehavior, but an all or nothing attitude may set you up for failure, and feeling like you've failed can set you up for more failure. Instead, accept and honor your humanness.3. Be specific.Be as specific as possible when determining goals. Articulate how you will measure success and exactly what you are trying to achieve. Setting a goal to lose weight is too general. A better choice would be to set a specific and manageable goal. For example say, "I will lose 25 pounds by June 30, 2005." Be specific when answering the what, when and how.4. Connect to your motivation for achieving your goal.Why do you want to achieve this goal? Why now? Make sure your motivation comes from your heart, and not from your head. In other words, your goal should be something you really desire, and not something you know you SHOULD do. Really connect to why this is so important to you. Pay attention to whether or not you are being driven by fear or love. Beware of setting goals based on what someone else in your life thinks you should do. Your resolutions should come from your authentic self.5. Examine your belief in your ability to achieve this goal.What do you believe about your ability to achieve your goals? If you have tried to reach the same goal many times before without much success, your confidence could be wavering. You could be feeding yourself negative messages without even realizing it. Be conscious about positive thinking. Remind yourself that you are capable of doing anything you set your heart to. Tell yourself every day that you have the ability to take the steps it will take to reach your goal.6. Create a detailed plan to achieve your goal.Let's say your goal is to eliminate the clutter in your home. But how will you start when the clutter is overwhelming? It may be helpful to break large goals into intermediate, manageable steps. Make a list of each area you need to tackle. Then break each area into even smaller segments that can be tackled easily. For instance, set time aside to clean out old clothes, then to organize sweaters, then to throw out old shoes, and finally arrange clothing by color or type. Don't forget to specify a time limit for accomplishing each of the smaller steps. Before you know it, the larger goal will have been met.7. Recognize that you may encounter obstacles.Most people give up on their goals because they run into some type of obstacle along the way. Obstacles can be internal or external. Examples of internal obstacles include negative self-talk, limiting beliefs and discipline issues. Some external obstacles are the lack of time, money or resources. Know in advance what hurdles you may have to conquer.8. Identify a plan of action to overcome obstacles.If you are trying to give up chocolate (I would never try this!), what are you going to do when you get a craving for chocolate, or when all your friends are chowing down on chocolate cake? Maybe your plan would be to carry a sweet substitute with you at all times. Or perhaps you could involve yourself in a fun activity when the urge strikes. If your obstacles are tougher and you need more support, consider hiring a life coach to help you work through your blocks.9. Enlist the support of an accountability partner.As you work towards your goals, it can be very helpful to have someone in your life to be your support partner. Consider asking your partner or friend to help you stick to the goals you have set. Use this person when you are struggling and set up a plan to check in regularly with him/her. As a coach, I have the privilege of trading coaching services with my peers. My coach helps me achieve my goals, overcome any obstacles, and celebrate my success.10. Celebrate success along the way.One of the most important things you can do for yourself is celebrate your small successes as you work towards your larger goals. Don't wait until the end to reward yourself. You deserve to be recognized for your efforts and your commitment, especially when your goals take a long time to achieve. If you don't celebrate on your journey, you will lose your motivation. So celebrate, celebrate, and celebrate!Achieving your goals can be tough work sometimes, but it is also very rewarding. If you fall off your path, remember you can always get back on. It's okay to take a few detours. It's also okay to take a break to rest. Don't beat yourself up or give up hope. Start again where you fell down and before you know it, you will be a pro at accomplishing your goals.Lori Radun, certified life coach for moms. Get her FREE monthly ezine for moms who want healthier and happier lives at http://www.true2youlifecoaching.com.
Halftime: Re-evaluating Yearly Goals – Goal-Setting
Halftime: Re-evaluating Yearly Goals
Note: This article was originally written at mid year so it is good reminder around June but the principles are applicable anytime.In a sporting event, the players are given a break at the half in order to refresh themselves, look at how they played in the first half, and set strategy for the second half. So as you approach halftime, here are some thoughts. Do you have a vacation planned in the next two months that will give you the needed break and refreshment? If not, schedule one this week! How did you "play" in the first half of this year? Have you met your goals that you established at the beginning of the year? Here are a few ideas to evaluate where you are at with your goals as you approach the halfway mark.Take some time to sit down alone and review your goals. How many are you on mark to make? How many have you not even begun on? How many have you achieved?For those you haven't even begun, my suggestion would be to reset your goal at 10 percent of the original goal. Obviously this goal hasn't been a priority, for whatever reason, and most likely won't suddenly become so. But you can make some ground. Set a small increase for the remaining six months and get ahead a little in these areas.For the goals you are on pace to achieve, try to stretch about 10 percent. So, to give it a numerical value, if your original goal was 10 and you have already reached 5 after halfway, stretch yourself to try to achieve 11 by the end of the year. This will give you a good reason to kick into high gear as the year progresses.For those goals you are on pace to break strongly through, try an increase of 50 percent.And finally, for the goals you have already reached, try to set the new goal at 100 percent of the original goal.In all of these remember that it is better to try hard, and even fail at a higher goal, than to take the easy route and attain nothing at all!Best of luck as you re-evaluate your goals!About The Author:Chris Widener is a popular speaker and writer as well as the President of
Made for Success, a company helping individuals and organizations turn
their potential into performance, succeed in every area of their lives and
achieve their dreams.To see Chris "live" at the upcoming Jim Rohn Weekend Event as he speaks on
the subject of Secrets of Influence go to
http://Chris-Widener.InspiresYOU.com/ or call 800-929-0434
Top 15 Goals Quotations – Goal-Setting
Top 15 Goals Quotations
Examine your own personal goals and find methods to achieve your desires with these valuable quotations about setting goals..."The most important thing about having goals is having one."-- Geoffrey F. Abert"It takes a little courage, and a little self-control. And some grim determination, If you want to reach the goal. It takes a deal of striving, and a firm and stern-set chin. No matter what the battle, If you really want to win. There's no easy path to glory, There's no road to fame. Life, however we may view it, Is no simple parlor game; But it's prizes call for fighting, For endurance and for grit; For a rugged disposition and don't know when to quit."-- Anonymous"No set goal achieved satisfies. Success only breeds a new goal. The golden apple devoured has seeds. It is endless."-- Bette Davis"A goal is a dream that has an ending. "-- Duke Ellington"The timid and fearful first failures dismay, but the stout heart stays trying by night and by day. He values his failures as lessons that teach The one way to get to the goal he would reach."-- Edgar A. Guest"Know what you want to do, hold the thought firmly, and do every day what should be done, and every sunset will see you that much nearer to your goal."-- Elbert Hubbard"Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude."-- Thomas Jefferson"It is for us to pray not for tasks equal to our powers, but for powers equal to our tasks, to go forward with a great desire forever beating at the door of our hearts as we travel toward our distant goal."-- Helen Keller"A goal properly set is halfway reached."-- Abraham Lincoln"It must be borne in mind that the tragedy of life does not lie in not reaching your goal. The tragedy of life lies in having no goal to reach."-- Benjamin E. Mays"Each of us has a fire in our hearts for something. It's our goal in life to find it and to keep it lit."-- Mary Lou Retton"Reach high, for stars lie hidden in your soul. Dream deep, for every dream precedes the goal."-- Ralph Vaull Starr"We must walk consciously only part way toward our goal, and then leap in the dark to our success."-- Henry David Thoreau"Goals are your personal statements of what you are truly willing to do to achieve what you really want to achieve."-- Denis Waitley"What you get by achieving your goals is to as important as what you become by achieving your goals."-- Zig ZiglarResource Box -