As we think about, and plan for next year - here's an idea - what if you set yourself up for success, instead of failure? There are 3 things you must do to achieve your goals, and potentially, change your life.
1. Know Yourself
People, in my experience, forget to take themselves, and how they behave into account when setting goals. They tend to consider what they want, and not consider what they must do to get it.
For example, if my goal is to exercise regularly, I might put "go to the gym" in my calendar three or four days a week. DONE! Woo hoo, I'm going to achieve my goal, right?! If it were that simple... here are some things to consider: Do I even look at my calendar regularly? Just because it's written down, will I do it or ignore it? What usually stops me when trying to achieve my goals? In the past, when I've achieved my goal, what process did I use that worked for me?
If you want to achieve your goals, the first step is to look at yourself realistically, without judgement, and take how you get things done into consideration.
2. Stretch 2 - 5 Steps Ahead of Where You Currently Are (and no further)
As my friend and colleague, Lisa Ferrer, points out, you can only manifest things that your mind believes. If you currently drive a Ford, it's probably too many steps ahead for your mind to believe that you're going to drive a Ferrari next year. Set your goals so they feel like a stretch and a little uncomfortable, in an exciting way. Remember, you can always stretch further. In fact, whenever we have our clients do vision boards, we use a frame that is easy to open so once they achieve the 2 - 5 step stretch, they can open the frame and add a picture of the next stretch goal.
Getting overly ambitious with your goals seems like a good thing to challenge yourself and move forward. Our experience with hundreds of clients is that being overly ambitious setting goals is detrimental to your overall results. So... what do you think about a new BMW?
3. Execute, Execute, Execute
A plan you execute is always more successful than a plan you don't. Make a list of all your goals. Look at all the things you want to accomplish and pick priorities. What is the one thing, if you accomplished that, would have the biggest impact? I went through this process myself a couple of years ago. After I made my list, I had over 20 goals written. I felt overwhelmed. I decided that exercising regularly would make everything else more reasonable to achieve because I would have more energy, my head would be clearer, and my body would be stronger. That year, I exercised seven days a week for over six months, and moved a bunch of other goals forward.
Pick your priorities, and focus on the goals that will have the biggest impact. Don't try to do too many things at a time, and remember, doing something is better than doing nothing.
You must take definitive action to achieve your goals, and these 3 steps are a must. Know yourself, and take how you get things done into consideration, and you will achieve more. Make your goal a stretch that is uncomfortably exciting, 2 - 5 steps ahead of where you currently are. When you achieve that, set the next goal. Lastly, you must execute on your goals to get them done!
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