How to Set and Achieve Realistic and Effective (SMART) Goals - Part Two
How to Set the Right Goals to Achieve What YOU really Want out of Life?
by Craig Lock
Well now is a good time of year to start setting goals for
the coming
year and put them into practice (forgotten your new years
ones already?)
and so CREATE YOUR OWN FUTURE.
What is really important to you right now in your
life? In other words, what do you really value? The
main headings are: PEOPLE- THINGS- OTHER, e.g.
career. Also finances. That word MONEY again!
Areas of goals:
These can be divided into short, medium and
long-term; these respectively being six months,
one/two years and five plus years. Also divide them
into balanced components, being: personal, family,
social and work goals. Then break them down further into:
* Spiritual
* Mental
* Physical
* Financial
* Family
* Community/School
Remember that over-concentration on one of your
goals will not ensure success. A car can only run well
if all the tyres are inflated to the correct pressure...
and if it has four wheels!
The art of goalsetting is to balance all of these areas.
If one area is out of proportion in your wheel of life,
it affects everything else. Your wheel of life should
be rounded evenly and balanced, so that it gives a
smooth ride. Unlike mine. Currently my social life is
pathetic; so I am joining "rent-a-friend", as I'm way
too obsessed with my work, my writing and spend
far too much time focussed on it... instead of
having more FUN !
A thought...
Perhaps it's about time I slowed down in my article
submissions and set a goal of using that time for pure relaxation! How's that for a goal?
TIPS ON HOW TO ACHIEVE GOALS
1. Give yourself permission to dream and desire. Put
aside (asmuch as you can) all reason and logic. If you
don't have a goal, you have nothing to aim for and
no plan of action. Without a goalyou are just kicking
a ball around. Think creatively by using your
imagination in setting targets.
2. Make a master dream list. It is important to write
down everything you want and need. Every place you
want to go and everything you would like to become
or achieve. These need not be high ideals, but
genuine wants, eg. putting food on the table (most
important for "starving" writers - hint hint, say no
more, say no more!), a new car, beach house,
swimming pool, yacht. A "proper job" for
writers like me, perhaps!
3. Aim high: Stretch yourself to your limit and you
will achieve more than you believed possible. The
higher the level of conscious goals, the greater their motivating power.
4. Prioritise your Goals. Start off with some easy goals
to get you in the 'habit of achieving'. Know where
you are now and how you got there. (" How the s...
did I get where I am now?). Look at yourself and learn
from others. These goals must be compatible
with your inner values. Values are what we hold to
be important at the deepest level of our being. Doing
this will make them far more likely to be achieved.
5. Set a time limit for achieving them. It's important
to set a deadline...but it doesn't have to be "set in concrete". Don't let something drag on for three years that could have been achieved in one year. Set short-term goals: tomorrow, next week, next month. Also set long range goals which will require
vision, courage and foresight. Finally, set your
ultimate goals like, becoming an All Black or Springbok
(these are rugby football players from New Zealand
and South Africa for "ignorant Americans"- oops, er,
sorry!), a Judge, or some grand purpose, etc.... as
long as that is what you really desire. List the steps
needed or smaller goals required to be achieved on
the path to your ultimate goal. By breaking them
down they will seem more attainable and once each
minor goal is attained will bring you closer to the
ultimate goal. List the skills, qualifications or traits
you will need to achieve them.
6. Be inspired: Receive regular inspiration and
enthusiasm through reading and other motivational
material (like this book- PLUG, PLUG). Also helpful is
frequent contact with a person or people who inspire
and enthuse you.
7. Focus on your goal like a laser and go after it every
day Don't be discouraged - sometimes "one step
backwards comes before a leap forward". "Dare to
be different to others", if that is just being "the real"
YOU. Don't allow the future to act on you. Act on
the future. Don't see yourself as a powerless victim
of circumstances, but rather as one having many
choices to take any path you CHOOSE to move your
life forward. N.B. Goals should be written down and
regularly reviewed. This makes for focussing ones
thoughts and COMMITMENT in seeing them through.
Write each goal on a list and as you achieve it, tick it
off and enter a new goal. Act immediately on your
short-term goals, as only ACTION will get you there.
Have balance in your dreams and be honest and
realistic with yourself. A goal is either meaningful in
itself or as a means to an end.
More Goal Tips
* Start first with your longer term goals and break
them down; if you start with short term goals you
will end up with more of the same.
* Focus first on the overall outcome, not how you
will achieve the goal or you will limit yourself.Then the amazing power of your creative imagination (in the form of your subconscious mind) will come up with the plan on HOW to achieve your goals. The answer may come to you immediately or take a while... and then come to you in unexpected moments, like in the shower. Usually at times when you are most relaxed.
* Don't be obsessive about goals - don't fret, but let them happen, don't force them. (I must earn that one and let "life take it's course"!). "Easy does it" + persistence, of course.
* Be flexible and be aware of the unexpected, which
may be a stepping stone to your goal in disguise.
* Involve your spouse/partner/those "nearest and
dearest to you" in goal setting.Shared family goals
have more meaning and the commitment to achieving
them is greater.
THE SECRET IS TO VISUALISE YOUR GOALS
AS ALREADY BEING ACHIEVED
"We should all be concerned about visualising the
future, because we will have to spend the rest of
our lives there."
- anon
Visualisation is the technique
used by top sportspeople to achieve results.
Successful people make things happen and use the
process of Goal Setting. Ask yourself whether you are
a goal-setter or goal-getter? You are not as stuck down
in a rut as you may think. You have far more choices
than you could ever imagine.
GOALS - THE FIVE KEY QUESTIONS
"The important thing is to identify what you need
to do AND THEN DO IT!"
* Which?
What do you really want? Break down into needs
and wants, e.g.. yacht, pool, new car, beach house,
holiday. Also set tangible and intangible goals.
* Why?
If it is not planned, it doesn't happen.
* When?
Goals must have a time frame. Long range goals
should have checkpoints and a completion date.
Who? Goals involve others :
# Business (the boss, manager)
# Personal (wife/husband/partner)
* How?
What is the blueprint? You can't build without plans.
The reason why you must have specific goals. Don't
Forget:
A. Involve others.
B. State goals in terms of measurable results.
C. Set target dates.
D. Be specific.
Criteria for Setting EFFECTIVE Goals
They:
# Should make you enthusiastic and excite you.
# Must be truly your OWN goals - meaningful to YOU
only.
# Must be based on real desires.
# Must be consistent with your values
and be purposeful.
# Must be written down.
# Must lift our sights, yet be realistic and
attainable.
# Must be specific and measurable.
# Must be compatible with your other goals.
# Must have a starting and completion date.
# Keep written goals in front of you.
# Should be dynamic, but not set in
concrete.
*
GOAL DESIGN
1. ITEMISE
- list possible goals
- don't analyse at this stage
2. CATEGORISE
- personal/family/work (use headings from
the Wheel of Life).
3. PRIORITISE
- relate to what you value and rank.
4. CRYSTALLISE
- make specific and clear, use the KISS principle ("keep
it simple, stupid"). Oops, sorry my dear reader!
Remember that goals are dreams which come true.
Most people give up on their dreams too soon or,
like me in the past, don't aim high enough and
achieve them too easily and quickly. Except in
writing!
N.B: The essence of goal setting is:
COMMITMENT
DISCIPLINE
DETERMINATION
I really believe that. This entire planning process might
take a few days.
GOALS
1. If it's not in writing, it is not a goal. It is a New
Year resolution.
2. If it's not specific, it's not a goal.
3. 'Goals must be believable, inspirational and
expandable'.
4. An effective goal is an exciting challenge.
5. Goals must be adjusted to new information.
6. Dynamic goals guide our choices.
7. Don't set short-term goals for longer than
ninety days.
8. Maintain a balance between long-term and
short-term goals.
9. Include your loved ones in your goals.
10. Set goals in all areas of your life.
11. Your goals must harmonise with your life.
12. Review your goals regularly.
13. Set vivid goals.
14. Don't chisel your goals in granite/set in
concrete.
15. Reach out into the future.
16. Have a set of goals for every day,
and review results every night.
17. Train yourself to crave your goals.
18. Set activity goals, not production goals
(salespeople).
19. Understand luck, and make it work
for you.
20. START NOW!
If you don't break your yearly objectives down into
first quarterly and then monthly/weekly/daily activity
targets, you cannot keep on track. Marathon runners
keep going not by focusing on the whole course,
but on the next drink station, the bottom of the hill,
and when the pain comes, the next lamp post.
The plans we make to achieve our dreams are the
blueprints for success. A written plan focuses the
mind on goals. Intermediate steps move one step
by step closer to success.
You should regularly review whether you are on
track (e.g.. monthly, quarterly, yearly). Goal setting
must be an ongoing process. Goals that are no
longer meaningful must be replaced by ones that are.
" A journey of a thousand miles starts with a single
step."
- Mao Tse Tung
I really like that one. No wonder I repeat it so often
(the first signs of impending
senility, perhaps???).
Mark Spitz, the American swimmer, won nothing at
the Mexico Olympics in 1968. Bitterly disappointed,
he dreamt of winning 7 goal medals at the next
Olympics in Munich in 1972 and set a target of the
times he would achieve in each event. He won those
seven medals with times within 100th of a second
of what he had said he would do. He developed his
plan and a rigorous training regime. His goal became
an obsession which overcame everything else...yet
Mark Spitz became a legend and achieved greatness.
Thomas Edison tried 2000 times to invent a light
bulb. He didn't see it as 2000 failures, but rather
as a process to be gone through. He didn't take it
personally, but saw his efforts as 2000 ways that did
not work. Every time an idea didn't work, it got Edison
a step closer to his ultimate goal - SUCCESS. That is
what kept him going. In a word, PERSISTENCE.
Even countries have set goals. After being defeated
in World War II, Germany was totally devastated.
However, Germany is now one of the economic
giants of Europe. Another defeated nation, Japan,
which only had 0.3 of the world's land and 3 of
the population now has 10 of the global trade.
The nation's leaders set goals for these countries
after the war, which seemed impossible at the time,
but were achieved.
The motto: Forget the mistakes of the past and
press on to the greater achievements of the future.
Remember that setting a new goal is the first step
towards a positive plan of action; because without
a goal you have no target, nothing to aim for.
"Challenges are a chance to boost motivation, seize
them like gold dust."
SUMMARY:
Set SMART goals
S - specific
M - measurable
A - achievable
R - realistic and
T- goals with a time-frame.
There is nothing more exciting and inspirational than
new goals. Our attitude to ourselves determines our
ability to set and achieve goals. Whatever your self-image,
you project it to other people and it becomes a
self-fulfilling prophecy.
With a positive attitude ( the subject of the following
chapter) and a good self image, our enthusiasm for
challenges will be heightened, as well as for life in
general. This results in greater job satisfaction, as
well as living an emotionally healthy life filled with
meaning and purpose.
Remember, negative attitudes in other people can
easily block your goals. I don't expect people to
understand what I'm trying to achieve in my personal
goals; but I'm getting there. Slowly! They are MINE
alone and I believe are right for ME! Raise your
sights high and dare to be different. In our society
we are conditioned to follow the leader. N.B: Follow
your own heart in setting your goals.
If you've set goals, but have had difficulty with your
goals in the last 3 months, it may be because of
the following:
1. Your goals were not realistic.
2. Your goals were not clear and specific.
3. Your goals were not written in the present tense.
E.g.. 'I have now cleared all my short term debts
and I have saved X$ (or pounds')...'I now weigh
my ideal body weight of...' Well done "Jumbo"!
4. You weren't really committed to your goals
and/or they were not appropriate for you.
A final few words of wisdom (even if I say so myself)
to end off this chapter...
WE GET WHAT WE EXPECT
DON'T ALLOW THE FUTURE TO ACT ON YOU
ACT ON THE FUTURE and so
YOU CREATE YOUR DESTINY
"There are those people who make it happen, those
who watch it happen, and those who don't even
know it happened."
WHICH ONE DO YOU WANT TO BE?
Craig Lock
http://www.craiglock.com
http://www.craiglockbooks.com
P.S: WITH FAITH AND PERSISTENCE,
YOU CAN ACHIEVE ANYTHING YOU SET
OUT TO DO.
"Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it.
Boldness has genius, power and magic in it."
- Johan Wolfgang Von Goethe (German philosopher)
BECOME ALL THE PERSON YOU ARE CAPABLE OF
BEING.
PPS:
As the ancient Chinese philosopher said so well,
"A journey of a thousand miles starts with a ...
broken fan belt and a flat tyre"...
er sorry...
a single step.
"A wish is just a wish,
A New Years Resolution is just a resolution.
Goals have deadlines and are the stepping stones down the
path,
the stair-case to your dreams."
- Craig Lock
There is a rich tapestry of talent in every human soul, that flows through (and from), the Source of our Being, the Spirit of God, Life. So don't spend your days stringing and tuning your instrument; start making and playing your unique tunes of music right now.
- Craig Lock
Authors Note:
Craig Lock has studied and written extensively in the field
of self help. This extract is from Craig's first published
book HANDBOOK TO SURVIVE - a collection of writings on
various subjects to help every man or woman survive in a rapidly changing, uncertain world. To order 'Handbook' click on http://www.craiglock.com/books.html
or email Craig at clock@paradise.net.nz