How to set your goals and achieve success
I’m a big believer in the idea of ‘whatever you set your mind to you can achieve’. However if you want to succeed you’ve got to have an idea of how to get there - this is where setting clear goals comes in. Goal setting allows you to take control of your life by setting a direction and focus as well as a benchmark for success.
Do you want to create something new and better in your life?
Then you gotta set some goals!
But knowing how to set your goals is part of the success - so here are 5 golden rules for how to set your goals and maximise your chances of turning a dream in to a reality.
1. create a list
Think of all the things that would make this year AMAZING and make a wish list. Don’t be realistic, dream big at this stage! A great way to generate ideas is to ask yourself what would make this year great? What would you love to say you’ve achieved by the end of the year? What’s the type of life you’d love to be living?
It can also help to think about your goals in the 4 key areas of your life:
Health & happiness
Love & relationships
Career & business
Free time & money
You can break down your goals into categories or just use it as a guide to generate ideas across all areas of your life.
2. prioritise
Now that you have a 2018 goal wishlist, look at your list and think which ones genuinely excite and motivate you? Which ones can you see yourself dedicating time and energy to achieve? Are they relevant to your priorities in life? Goals should be relevant to the direction you want your life and career to take otherwise you risk setting inconsistent and scattered goals that will divide your focus. I like to start small and choose 4 goals that are really important to me (often choosing one from each key area of my life) and that I’d really want to achieve in the next year. If I hit those goals, i’ll go back to the list and choose some more, however I find that 4 big goals is often plenty!
3. Breakdown your goals in to action steps
You’ve set the destination so now you need to create the route.
Work backwards from the end goal and think about what steps are needed in order to achieve the results you want. This is your map or GPS and helps to keep big, longer term goals more manageable as well as keeping you motivated each time you tick off an action step.
4. set a deadline
Your goals must be time-bound as this will increase your sense of urgency and also give you a date for when you can celebrate your success. Once you’ve set a date, make sure it is possible to achieve the goal you set in the given timeframe. If not then break it down in to a smaller goal and set the original goal over a longer time period. It’s really important to make your timeframe realistic to give you the best possible chance of success. I truly believe you can achieve anything you set your mind too - if you fall short it’s usually because your timeframe wasn’t realistic. This can be demoralising and damage your confidence for achieving future goals so try to be realistic and think about how much time you have daily or weekly to dedicate and set your time frame accordingly.
5. Write THEM DOWN!
Commit your goals to paper and you are already 42% more likely to succeed. Amazing ey? So before you do anything download my goal setting planner and write them down! Then the next step is to keep your goals visible. Stick your goal planner on the wall, on the fridge, wherever you are going to see it often, preferably daily to keep you focused on the right track. I like to review my progress regularly - often on a sunday evening to see how I’m doing towards the goals I’ve set, I can then plan the following week with these in mind. I find this review process crucial - as mothers we have so many balls to juggle on a daily basis it’s very easy to drop the focus on personal achievements that are just as important to overall happiness as are priorities for the family.
After you’ve written your goals down, an optional step is to share your goal with a friend you trust and who believes in your ability to succeed (this is crucial). This sharing process increases the likelihood you’ll transform your dreams in to reality even further.