Goal Setting 101

Understanding Goal Setting is one of the most important skills needed to be successful. Without clearly defined goals it is almost impossible to achieve your life's dreams. Many people have wants and desires and call them goals; yet become disappointed or frustrated when they don't achieve the desired outcome. Proper goal setting must have some or all of the following characteristics;

A clearly defined mission statement

What do you really want is the first question that needs to be answered. Is it more time to spend with loved ones, a new job, a sense happiness and fulfillment, etc.? If you don't know what you want or why you want it, all the action and wishing in the world will not make any difference. Goals must be clearly defined. Simply stating, "I want to own my own business," or "I want to lose weight" is simply not enough, "effective goals must be specific, time limited, realistic and obtainable; and they must also have checkpoints for measuring progress. An example of a clearly defined, goal is: "I want to lose 10 pounds by August 2007.

Write it down

We have all heard this before; yet, the fact is, most people don't take the time to put their goals in writing. Creating a goal sheet is very important and serves as a roadmap with directions on how to get from point A to point B. Much like an architect, who would never dream of building a house without a carefully drafted plan? A written goal should include the actual goal statement, the action steps you will need to take to achieve that goal (these are called objectives) and a timeline, which lists the dates to accomplish the objectives and also include a final date to accomplish the goal.

Be prepared to make adjustments

Goals are not written in stone. Goals naturally evolve over time so be prepared to make modifications and adjustments to your goals if needed. Don't be discouraged if life gets in the way and you find yourself having to tweak or modify your goal. Remember, "it ain't over, till its over". As long as you have breath in your body, you can work toward achieving your goals.

What comes 1^st, the chicken or the egg?

One last point to consider when beginning the process of achieving your goals is that action begets action. Some people believe that motivation comes 1^st and action comes second; however, that is just not sure. Most successful people will tell you that action and seeing the results of that action is what made them become motivated. The key to motivation is movement; even small movement. Start slow if you must, but just start.