How to Set Goals You'll Actually Follow
- Ruthlessly Eliminate Your Goals. Consistently prune and trim down your goals. If you can muster the courage to prune away a few of your goals, then you create the space you need for the remaining goals to fully blossom.
- Stack Your Goals. Make a specific plan for when, where and how you will perform this."Networking: After I return from my lunch break, I will send one email to someone I want to meet."
- Set an Upper Bound. Don't focus on the minimum threshold. Instead of saying, “I want to make at least 10 sales calls today.” rather say, “I want to make at least 10 sales calls today, but not more than 20.”
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Is the act of selecting a target or objective you wish to achieve.
Goal setting is not only about choosing the rewards you want to enjoy, but also the costs you are willing to pay to achieve your goals.
- Your goals are like the rudder on a small rowboat. They set the direction and determine where you go.
- If you commit to one goal, then the rudder stays put and you continue moving forward.
- If you flip-flop between goals, then the rudder moves all around and it is easy to find yourself rowing in circles.
- If the rudder is your goal, then the oars are your process for achieving it. While the rudder determines your direction, it is the oars that determine your progress.
Example: If you’re a writer, your goal is to write a book. Your system is the writing schedule that you follow each week.
- Use simplicity. When in doubt, eliminate options. It is more difficult to focus on reading a blog post when you have 10 tabs open in your browser.
- Use Visual Cues, like the Paper Clip Method or the Seinfeld Strategy, to create an environment that visually nudges your actions in the right direction.
- Opt-Out vs. Opt-In. For example, schedule your yoga session for next week while you are feeling motivated today. When your workout rolls around, you have to justify opting-out rather than motivating yourself to opt-in.
Evidence of your progress towards a goal is one of the most motivating things you can experience.
The trick is to realize that counting, measuring, and tracking is not about the result. Measure to discover, to find out, to understand.
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Write down your big goal – e.g. I want to be fit enough to run 10km.
Break this down into smaller self contained goals such as;
- Nutrition
- Equipment
- Building stamina
Break each of those goals into simple daily tasks to complete. For building stamina these could be;
- Week 1: walk 1km everyday
- Week 2: jog/walk 1km everyday
- Week 3: jog/walk 2km 5 times a week
- Week 4: jog (no walking) 2km 5 times a week, and so on
That big goal is now just a series of simple tasks.
I call this 'Stepping Stones'. Try it on any goal.
- Step #1: Take Your Emotional Temperature, around the most important areas of your life.
- Step #2: The Neurology of Ownership: When we take ownership of something–an item, an idea or a goal–we are more committed to it.
- Step #3: Outcome + Process: Most people set an intention or an ideal outcome and try working toward it, but that gets you only halfway there. You have to pick an outcome and a process.
- Step #4: Identify Blockers: When we first set our goals we are super optimistic and filled with hope–and that’s great. One thing that happens, however, is we fail to identify possible blockers.
- Evaluate and reflect. Regularly write down where you are right now, and if you are happy with your current level of satisfaction.
- Define your dreams and goals. What do you want? Schedule some quiet “dream time” and think about what really thrills you. Then prioritise those dreams.
- Make your goals S.M.A.R.T. (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Time-sensitive)
- Have accountability. Find someone to hold you accountable to your goals.