Requirements for Successful Goal Setting and Achievement – Goal-Setting
Requirements for Successful Goal Setting and Achievement
Benefits of Goal SettingGoal setting helps us determine our priorities, get organized, make big decisions, and realize our dreams. The act of merely setting a goal brings about positive change for many people. When you set a goal you are creating an exciting challenge for yourself. Almost all motivational experts incorporate goal setting as an important part of their programs. The effectiveness of Goal Setting can be seen in the incredible accomplishments of people such as: Henry Ford who wanted to make cars affordable for everyone, Bill Gates whose goal was to have a computer in every household, and John F. Kennedy who set out to put a man on the moon within a decade. There is a famous story about Jim Carrey who, while struggling as an actor in 1987, drove his car up on Mulholland Drive in the Hollywood hills to think about the future. While sitting there overlooking the city of Los Angeles he wrote a check made out to himself for "acting services rendered" in the amount of $10 million. He dated the check for Thanksgiving of 1995. Jim's Goal turned out to be conservative because by the time 1995 rolled around he was making $20 million a movie.The objective of MyGoalManager.com is to direct the user through the entire Goal process from definition to achievement. This Goal Achievement process entails the following requirements:Well formed Goal Statements
Breaking goals down into manageable Steps
Motivation and Commitment
Reminders and Keeping on track
Frequent Review and Re-assessment1. Well formed Goal StatementsThe Goal Statement forms the basis for the entire process so careful attention should be placed on formulating a clear and accurate goal statement. A good way to remember how a goal statement should be defined is the old S.M.A.R.T. acronym used by many experts in goal setting. SMART stands for:Specific
Measurable
Action-Oriented
Realistic
TangibleThe Goal should be specific enough so that we know exactly what we are striving for, measurable so we know exactly what is to be accomplished and when it has been reached, action-oriented declaring positive activity that will produce results, realistic in that it is practical and can be achieved given the limited availability of resources, and tangible meaning concrete and not vague. The goal statement "Increase sales 25% by the end of the fiscal year without increasing advertising spending" is an example that follows these rules.2. Breaking down Goals into manageable StepsOnce we have a well-formed Goal Statement we need some direction to follow to achieve this Goal. While the goal "Increase sales 25% by the end of the fiscal year without increasing advertising spending" is a great goal statement, this is a monumental task without being broken down into smaller detailed steps. The creation of Goal Steps gives us an "Action Plan" that when completed will lead to Goal Achievement. Steps also allow for tracking of progress towards the goal. Goal Steps should be positive and not used to list obstacles that must be overcome which focuses on the negative. Negativity can kill motivation but there is power in positive thinking.3. Motivation and CommitmentMotivation and commitment are what make us strive to achievement. They give us the push, desire, and resolve to complete all of the other steps in the Goal process. This motivation can be obtained by developing a personal statement that creates a high level of emotion and energy that guarantees achievement. One self help expert said that as a child he was kicked out of his local country club pool because he was not a member, in response he later made a goal that he would one day have a pool that is one foot bigger than that country club's pool. The motivation of being asked to leave the pool provided the necessary fuel for him to achieve this goal. Commitment creates more accountability and is what sets us on direct course to reach our goals. It may create costly negative consequences upon failure to attain a goal. Making a commitment might be something like having invested your savings in your new business which you will lose if it fails. Motivation and commitment are specific to your situation and life and only you can form statements that will ensure you reach your goal the quickest. The more personal you make your motivation and commitment statements for each goal, the more motivated you will be to accomplish your goal.4. Reminders and Keeping on TrackReaching our goals requires persistence and regular attention. We need some sort of system to keep us reminded and accountable. MyGoalManager.com uses a combination reminder emails, calendars, and reports to keep users organized and on track. Sharing goals with others who can give you help and support is a highly effective way to increase your chances for success. If some accountability system is not used then we are likely to lose sight and fail.5. Frequent Review and Re-assessmentWhen we first sit down and start to define goals it can seem like a difficult and daunting task but over time it begins to get much easier. Patience is required. Goal Setting is definitely an ongoing process that is accomplished over time. Any goals program that defines goals and then ignores them will fail. All goals due in the next year should be reviewed at least once a week and daily if possible. The great thing about frequent review is that this forces us to make big decisions and determine priorities in our life. We should keep watch for goals that are not being achieved on time or for goals on which we keep extending the deadline.I hope this article will help you achieve your goals and give you more focus and direction. Good luck as you realize all of your greatest dreams. Go to http://www.mygoalmanager.com to get started on your goals now!MyGoalManager.com is an easy to use Goal Setting and Achievement System that directs you step-by-step through prioritized goal definition, plan of action formulation, motivation, reminders, and guidance reviews. MyGoalManager.com is owned and operated by Gruve International (http://www.gruveintl.com).
Business Goal Setting and Then Following Through – Goal-Setting
Business Goal Setting and Then Following Through
Your business can't go according to plan if you have no plan.What do you want to achieve this year? More new customers per week? Higher average order amounts? Better customer service ratings? No matter what it is you are shooting for, goal setting is one of the most important things that you will do in the New Year. I've got a few tips to help you get there.1. Keep it Challenging but Realistic.Any goal that you set for your company should be challenging but don't over do it. For example, if you had an average order amount of $700 last year, you wouldn't want to set your goal for this year at $3000 per order. Unless you make drastic changes in how your company runs or what you are selling, that goal is just not realistic. You know best what you may be able to achieve in your particular industry, so be honest with yourself and set your goals accordingly.2. Write All Your Goals Down.You may say to yourself on January 1, "I want to get 20 more new customers per week this year." A few months later you will be saying "Did I say I wanted 20 or 30?" Or more realistically, you have forgotten that you even made that goal. If you have all of your goals written down you will be able to not only go back and check them, you will also be able to go down the list every few months and check to see how many of them you have completed.3. Assess Your Current Situation.To set goals you have to know where you are at right now. In 2003 I wanted to assess our customer service rating so we sent out a survey to all of our customers on which they could rate us in each department of our operation. That helped us establish our base. Now we send the survey to every customer after every order. This way we can keep track of how we are doing and if there is ever a hiccup we can fix it quickly. Don't assume anything. Always assess the current situation before setting a new goal.It's Only Going to Hurt A Little...Now, in financial goal setting for your business, one invariably comes to the question: "How do I decide on a budget when starting a marketing plan?"This is obviously the first question that you have to answer in order to get started on your new campaign. And in order to reach the income goals you have set for yourself.So how do you figure out what your budget should be? Here is an easy method to help you find a number that is going to work for you and your business. Some might say that it is a good rule of thumb, but I personally judge things on whether or not they work and get results. That's all.Moving on... Start with the amount of income that your company generated last month and multiply it by .14 (or 14%). That means that if you had $50,000 in Gross Income last month you should budget to spend $7000 on marketing in the next month. Wait... I know, it sounds painful but it is just like a shot at the doctor. It might hurt for a minute (or in this case a month) but down the road you are going to be glad that you went through it. Putting that much toward the right marketing will bump up your income the next month and start you on a cycle of steady growth.I know that some businesses run tighter than others and it is possible that you won't be comfortable with that amount in the beginning. Don't misunderstand me, any marketing is better than no marketing. Don't get discouraged if your budget is lower than 14%. But use 14% as the ideal to strive for because, for me as well as many other growing businesses, it has proven to give the best rate of growth possible. How do I know, you ask? My company has expanded 400% in the past 2 years. Now picture your business at 4 times its current size... There's that smile I was looking for!The growth of your business is based on three factors; quality products, great customer service and the proper amount of marketing. If you know you have the first two taken care and you still aren't experiencing healthy growth then you need to take a serious look at your marketing budget.So sharpen your pencils, start calculating and decide how rapidly you want your business to grow.Please take a moment this week to sit down and decide on your goals for the New Year. Even if it is past the New Year and even well into the year, set your goals for the rest of the year.Everything is easier when are working towards a goal. My goal is your success and I assume that is your goal as well.Joy Gendusa founded PostcardMania in 1998; her only assets a computer and a phone. In 2004 the company did close to $9 million in sales and employs over 60 persons. She attributes her explosive growth to her ability to choose incredible staff and her innate marketing savvy. Now she's sharing her marketing secrets with others. For more free marketing advice, visit her website at http://www.postcardmania.com
4 Steps to Inspired Goal Setting – Goal-Setting
4 Steps to Inspired Goal Setting
At the beginning of the year, there's often an orgy of goal setting. People get into a collective frenzy about setting personal and professional goals.Traditional goal setting often doesn't work because we are not in vibrational harmony with our goals. The feelings we have about our goals aren't aligned with our thoughts. So we often effort and take too much action before we've properly aligned our feelings and beliefs.Here are 4 Steps to Inspired Goal Setting.1. Know why you want the goalMany of us to becoming specific about our goals way too early. We haven't felt the essence of why we want what we want. We really need to feel our desire about our goals.What is it we really want; more time to spend with loved ones, space, a sense of aliveness, pleasure, joy. If we don't know why we want what we want, then all the action in the world won't make any difference.You could also call it the Vision Thing. To have a bigger vision regarding our lives puts goal setting in context and makes them far easier to achieve. If your goal is a "have to" "must" or an
"ought to", then it aint gonna happen. You joined that gym because you "had to" lose weight and how often did you go?2. Gain clarity about your desireHaven't you already done that? Well, partially. You can only set personal and professional goals for yourself. If your desire isn't there, then it aint happening:.)If your goals aren't crafted with your true desires in mind, then they'll go unfulfilled and/or self sabotage is often the result. It's important to be excited by the possibilities that
working towards your goal will bring.Also, cultural and social expectations often shape our goals as to what we think we can have as opposed to what we actually want - so need to gain clarity about what is truly your desire and what belongs to other people.You'll never be able to do enough to satisfy other people, so stick to satisfying yourself.3. The SpecificationOnce you've ramped up your desire and feelings about the goal, here is where the SMART model (S = Specific, M= Measurable A= Action orientated R= Realistic, T= Time based) comes in.
Write down your specification in rich feeling detail and then............4. ............. Let GoThat's right. Let go of your judgements, your timing of when it should happen, your attachment to the outcome looking the way you think it ought to look.Letting go means that you stop efforting and yearning and waiting. This frees you up so that you are not wedded or
attached to a specific outcome, but let the Universe deliver.From here you start to use your intuition and take inspired action. Inspired action is effortless. You take action from a place of feeling good.It opens you up to receiving ideas, opportunities and different
kinds of assistance. You may find yourself drawn to call someone,
or someone contacts you out of the blue. For some reason you take a different route to work and you see something that gives you an idea.You do less as more comes to you. You stop "having" to do things and end up effortlessly achieving your goals.And if you don't achieve your goal(s)..........................Reframe it - maybe the Universe was telling you that this wasn't the right path and was leading you to something better, even though you didn't always see it at the the time. Hasn't that often happened in your experience?Follow the above process and you'll find yourself achieving your goals with much more ease and joy.Julie Plenty helps creatively self employed people prosper by using the Law of Attraction, because they ARE their business. For more self empowerment and Law of Attraction articles, and to sign up for her Life Design newsletter, visit:http://www.self-empowerment-zone.com