Goal Setting

A new year is the perfect time to review your goals and how they fit in with your overall plans for the coming year. Over the past 12 years, I’ve refined a goal setting process that works for me. Hopefully something will resonate with you, or give you some inspiration to create your own process.

To set a goal

Ask yourself:

  1. Where do I want to be at this time next year?
  2. What needs to change from now to then?
  3. What can I do to kick start those changes?
  4. What can I do to motivate myself when needed?
  5. What will I do to reward myself at which key milestones?

Make it SMART:

  • Specific – Rather than “blog regularly” set “blog weekly” or “blog monthly”
  • Measurable – You need to be able to see yourself progressing towards your goal so it needs to be something you can measure.
  • Achievable – Is it a realistic goal?  I’d love to be a millionaire by this time next year, but it’s not likely.
  • Relevant – Does the goal progress you towards the life you want? If not, what’s the point?
  • Time-bound – Set a time limit. Rather than saying “I want to lose weight this year”, use I want to lose 10kg by 30th June.

Plan for success

Once you’ve set the goal, you need to figure out how to get there.

  • Break your goal down to 3 or 4 manageable steps and set a due date for each (and an appropriate reward if that will help with motivation).
  • For each step in your goal, identify the specific tasks required and put them on your to-do list.
  • Regularly review your progress against the key steps and adapt your plan as needed.

Tips

  • There’s nothing wrong with realising that a goal is not as important as you’d thought it was.  If this happens, don’t feel bad about changing or even discarding it altogether.
  • Make a vision board, or Pinterest board to inspire you.
  • If you need to be held accountable get friends and family involved. If you’d rather work with people who are going through the same thing find an online forum where you can talk to people who are working towards the same or similar goals.
  • Download my Goal Setting Worksheet to help you visualise your progress.
  • If you need some help with goal setting, check out my blog post Identify And Prioritise Your Goals
  • If you need some inspiration to help you convert ideas to action items, check out my blog post Converting A Plan Into Action Items