Keys To Success Series: How To Set Goals

We all set goals, don't we? It is, after all, a valued tradition around about the time when the ball drops in Times Square. Our New Year's resolutions are often formed haphazardly, knowing full well that we are more than likely to fall off the wagon and retreat into our old habits. The practice of setting New Year's resolutions may be little more than a joke to many, but it is nevertheless very important for each one of us to set up smart goals for ourselves, especially if we want to make something of our lives and set our own direction.

In order to know how to set goals for yourself, you have to ask some searching questions. Where are you in life and how did you get here? How has this journey been for you? If you are honest, are you entirely happy with this journey and the place it has taken you? Using this process of self-realization, understand that if you are going to make positive changes for the better, they always have to be significant, yet achievable at the same time.

Writing goals can be a very empowering exercise. You have to be able to draw on your own strengths, but you also have to be able to expand your horizons, to take you to places where you have likely never been before. This will require a lot of dedication and application and you might have to make some very difficult decisions in the early days. Remember that the circle of people around you will have a very powerful influence on you. If you want to get to an entirely different level, the chances are that you will have to seek out and engage with people who are of like mind, or who have already completed a similar journey.

Network with those who understand your aspirations and use the information that you gather from them to educate yourself. This is important as you set those goals and commit them to paper. Do not be afraid to invest in your own education, as this will be an ongoing process as you complete the journey from mundane to miraculous!

Maintain a positive mental attitude at all times. Block out those who would tell you that it will "never work," and never take no for an answer. You have to be very persistent and be aware of distractions, as they will be everywhere. If you are developing your own new business, you can often get bogged down in what is known as "the paralysis of analysis," a very real threat to your success. You have to take action as soon as you have finished writing your goals and you have to foster a level of single-mindedness that you may never have experienced before.

Once you have written your goals, formalize them. Type them out into a Word document neatly and concisely and then print several copies. Make sure that you display them in prominent positions, where you will see them on a regular basis. Above all else remember that when you set goals, they have to be significant, but also realistic. You may find it better to establish measurable and more reachable interim goals as part of your longer journey to that preferred destination.

Have you written your goals? Ask yourself why you want to accomplish these goals. Have you accomplished what you wanted yet? If not yet, why?  I welcome all your comments!