For some people, success seems incredibly elusive. They set goals year after year only to look up and realize they have made almost no progress in achieving their dreams.
Anyone who has made a New Year’s resolution knows just how difficult goals can be to reach. Most New Year’s resolutions are bound to fail.
But setting effective goals can mean the difference between failure and success. If you are frustrated with trying the same old routine it’s time to get back to the drawing board.
Try these tips for setting goals and you may be surprised with the results.
1. Start Small For Effective Goals
Success breeds success. When setting goals you need to start small.
That’s why it’s better to set the goal of getting to the gym rather than losing 30 pounds.
There’s no need to abandon reach goals entirely. But creating small goals along the way will make achieving success all the easier.
Whenever you set a goal for yourself ask if you can break it down into smaller parts. What can you do in one day to slay your goals?
By starting small you will be less likely to get discouraged. Plus, each small success you achieve along the way will build on itself.
2. Create a Way To Track Progress
There is a major secret to setting goals and achieving them: You need a way to track your progress.
The good news is that by setting small goals along the way you will have measuring sticks to find out how you are doing. In addition, you will be able to adjust your performance accordingly.
Too many people give up on a dream because they feel discouraged. They look back and think they haven’t made any progress whatsoever.
But whether you take photos, keep a diary, or use an app, you need to track your progress.
You’ll see you’ve gotten farther than you think.
3. Adjust Your Goals Over Time
As you change your goals should be adjusted as well. Success is not a fixed moment of arrival.
If you want to reach powerful goals and stay positive you will need to evaluate your progress and make the appropriate changes.
The good news is that adjusting your goals may mean that you are already achieving major success. Whether you are a fan of Oprah Winfrey or Warren Buffett you can be sure their goals had to change as they achieved some measure of success.
Set aside time on a quarterly basis to track progress and make adjustments as need be.
But be careful not to create a negative moving target. Celebrate successes and change goals as your performance and abilities change.
4. Be Specific
Goals need to be concrete and tangible in order to be effective. It isn’t enough to want to do better or try harder.
Being as specific as possible in your goals is a cornerstone of success. In fact, 90% of studies reveal that specific and challenging goals lead to higher performance.
When you sit down and break your goals into small parts make sure you can measure them and know how to gauge success.
This way your progress will be easy to see. Create specific goals with incremental steps to get to that next level of performance.
5. Stay Motivated and Learn From The Masters
Just measuring your progress isn’t enough to achieve your goals. When you set and measure your goals it’s important to stay motivated.
What better way to stay motivated than to surround yourself with other positive people? If that isn’t diable for you today you can use other methods to continue to strive for your goals.
Motivational quotes are only one way to keep on track. You can also study similar achievers and learn from their progress.
Too many goal-setters focus on the final success of others. They see the end results not the intermittent progress.
Studying other masters and learning from their journey will help you set the right goals for success and achieve them.
6. Create a System of Accountability
It is often not enough to create goals in a vacuum and measure them on your own. Reaching a new level of achievement may require another level of accountability.
Accountability can come in various forms. You may sign up for a class and make yourself accountable to attend and do the work.
Or you may share your goals with a trusted friend or advisor. In these ways, you can keep yourself on track with the support of a network of accountability.
7. Avoid Multitasking
Determination and focus are attributes we assign to successful people. But we live in an age when it is all too easy to become distracted.
If you become distracted in your daily life it is that much easier to get distracted from your daily goals. And, as stated earlier, unless you have small measurable goals the larger success will be that much more elusive.
Multitasking isn’t just bad for focus. It can also lead to IQ drops.
Watch out for multitasking. It won’t get you close to your goals.
8. Align Your Goals
You can’t go to New York and California at the exact same time. You also can’t spend from 3 pm to 4 pm on Saturdays mowing the lawn and taking a yoga class.
One of the biggest pitfalls of goal setting is becoming fragmented. You may even sabotage your success by setting competing goals for yourself.
Whether you want to spend more time with your family or score an art show at a local gallery, make sure all of your goals are aligned.
Back up, take a look at your goals and investigate if any of them are competing with one another. Each of your goals should build toward a larger achievement.
The Mind-Body Connection
Setting the right effective goals is a major step toward creating a better life. Through clear and measurable goals you can celebrate your successes and avoid getting discouraged along the way.
Every step of the way in goal setting and achievement requires a positive approach and clear direction to move forward.
But you also need to make sure your body and mind are getting the right fuel. Find out more about the right diet for positive thinking to help you achieve your goals.