Goal Setting

If you've gotten this far into the new year without setting some goals you are not alone. A vast majority of people do not set good goals for themselves and this trait is not helping them to realize their dreams.

I've written a lot before about goal setting but it's a good time to renew some of those ideas and if you're one of the many, start thinking about what's important to you.

Without a goal you cannot have a plan and without a plan you will not achieve great things. The first thing to do is think about what you want to achieve in the long run. Not this week or this month, maybe not even this year. Think about your ultimate goal. It could be to climb Everest or to do an ironman or run from coast to coast. Whatever it is, write it down and put it somewhere you will see it everyday.

Now you have your ultimate goal, start thinking about interim goals which will help you move in that direction. If your ultimate goal is to run a marathon, for example, set interim goals to run a 5K, 10K, half marathon etc.

Goals are good to have but there are several things you need to take into account when setting them. They must be achievable, specific and have a timeline. For example you could say that 'I want to be a runner' but this is not specific (what makes you a runner) and does not have a timeline (by when). A better goal would be 'I want to finish a 5K run within the next 3 months'. It's achievable, specific and has a timeline.

Now you have your interim goal, start out making the plan to achieve it. If you want to run 5K then you need to do some training so plan out how much time you have and can dedicate to achieving the goal. Be realistic with the plan and you can't fail. If your plan requires too much of your time or you think it's not achievable in the timeline you set, adjust the timeline.

If you are really a type 'A' personality you could be setting goals each and every day. Things you want to do that will move you towards your ultimate goal. Most people don't need to get into that much detail but having a plan for what you need to do in the next few days will be a big step to achieving your dreams.