Motivate clear and well-set goals on their own. Therefore, it is important to correctly and clearly plan short-term and long-term goals. Let's look at an example of a plan to achieve a goal, broken down into 8 steps.
Many people have a question: “Why set goals for yourself, work to achieve them and ultimately get what we want?”
Achieving a goal is much more than doing the same things every morning. Wake up, eat, go to work. If daily actions do not have a vector, they do not drive us . We don’t feel that there is anything more behind them, that they are another step towards the implementation of a big plan.
To have such a meaningful life, you need to start by realizing your goals . After awareness, there is a need to formulate main goals that will lead to achieving results.
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Statement of purpose
Goals are a force that requires you to focus on what you want to achieve in life. Without a clear plan for the outcome, it will not be possible to achieve not only quick execution, but no execution at all.
You need to understand what you want to achieve in your life, both in the short term and for the longer term. To do this, you can create a vision of an ideal day in 10 years and decide to realize it. This will be your big goal .
Everyone knows how to formulate goals in words. But, in addition to scoring, you also need to know how to record them and how to achieve them . For many, this is a completely different challenge. To which special techniques can be applied.
Read useful tips on how to formulate goals that will change your life. Step-by-step instructions on how to set a goal in life.
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Goals - a step-by-step plan for the right actions
So, we have a list of 10 points. All our cherished dreams and deepest desires. Then we add our goals to each point. That is, according to the diagram, to the right of each point we set goals. How to achieve your goals to achieve your dreams?
1. Buying a two-story house is a dream (for this I need to earn 300,000 three hundred thousand dollars) - this is the goal
2. Exchange a sedan car for an SUV of a higher class (goal - $110,000)
3. Earn your first million dollars, and really feel it in your hands (the goal is to save $200,000 annually)
4. Learn to understand securities and shares in order to play on the stock exchange (the goal is to undergo training)
5. Write a book about achieving success (the goal is to find free time)
6. Record your own studio music album (goal - find $50,000, free time and musicians)
7. Relax for a month with your family in Egypt (goal – $15,000, free month)
8. Treat your teeth (the goal is to visit the dentist)
9. Lose 10 kilograms (goal - start going to the gym)
10. Build excellent relationships with children (the goal is to spend more time with children, constantly take an interest in their activities and provide assistance).
So, we sorted out our dreams and goals. Has something started to clear up in your head at least a little? As you can see, goals and dreams are very closely related. And now, in order to motivate ourselves to action, the third point we must add to our dreams and goals is reasons. That is, we must answer the question next to each point: Why? Or for what?
Write down your goal
You have identified a goal, you need to write it down. Although the main argument of the 1979 Harvard study in favor of goal writing is bogus, writing down goals is half of achieving a goal .
Writing on paper is a way to think and not lie to yourself . In our heads, we are capable of being #1 in Forbes in a few years. And practice - a sheet of paper and writing down the goals for achieving such a result, will not allow us to lie about our flourishing exaggeration of our abilities.
Building a hierarchy of complementary goals in your mind is like playing chess while keeping in mind the placement of the pieces on the board. Few people are able to mentally agree on 30 goals, eliminate conflicts in the required resources, and agree on periods of achievement.
So have some paper and pen ready. Writing down a goal will help you achieve more than anything else combined.
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Help from psychologist Daria Milai
To ensure that your understanding of all of the above in this article is firmly established in your mind, sign up for my consultation. You will learn a lot of interesting things there, including:
- about ways to deal with your own insecurities;
- about how to overcome the fear of change;
- rationally distribute free and working time;
- how to quickly and effectively turn dreams into reality;
- learn to identify your strengths and weaknesses;
- use personal advantages to successfully achieve your goals.
In addition, my tips will help you achieve excellent results in life and at work. This way you will take the first serious step towards your bright future.
Break big goals into small ones
If you set a very large goal for yourself in the annual plan, then its implementation may take from 50% to 80% of all your resources. Such a goal can be formed as a global line of behavior - a strategic goal or a lifelong goal.
But you shouldn’t set such huge goals to achieve in the short term for the following reasons:
- You can already understand at the beginning of execution that in this form the task will not be completed .
- Having looked at the deadlines, abandon its regular review . Why re-read the plan once a week if there are only 2-3 goals and it is clear that they have not been achieved.
- You are depriving yourself of frequent victories . Instead of feeling progress from achieving 10 goals, you wait and languish when you close at least one.
Divide the huge task into parts, set a target time for completion. Break your big goal down into smaller, simpler mini-goals. This will allow the monstrous goal to be presented as a plan for achieving the goal, broken down into steps.
In addition, each short-term goal achieved guarantees progress in steps towards the completion of the grand plan. Divide and group your plan: by week, month, semi-annually and yearly respectively.
Make sure that each next step builds on the implementation of the previous one and brings you closer to the final achievement.
To make your plan a reality, create a to-do list every week and sort it according to the Eisenhower Matrix. A weekly list will help you understand whether you are making progress towards your goal or not.
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How to achieve results: 5 rules
Even the most correct and inspiring goal will not be achieved if it is not supported by action. Once the goal is correctly formulated, it is necessary to move on to the most critical stage - the process of achieving the result.
The first thing you will encounter is a lot of fears in your head, most often fictitious. Let's look at the 3 most popular fears and how to deal with them:
Work with fears
1. “I can’t do it”
A very common thought, and extremely harmful. Take a look around. Look at the incredible results those around you achieve: they create a million-dollar business, become screen stars, popular performers. Imagine that one day one of them would say to themselves - I won’t succeed. It would have stopped him and he wouldn't have even tried. Who would he be now? You don’t want to deprive yourself of future victories, success and achievements, simply because you are afraid of defeat?
In fact, it is not defeat you need to be afraid of . In any case, it will be experience, practice, effort. But what you really have to be afraid of is not even trying. Drive this fear out of your head, and constantly repeat to yourself - “I can do it!” Soon you will believe it yourself and achieve results that you only dreamed of before.
2. “The goal is unattainable”
You need to figure out why you think this way. If no one has achieved such a goal before you, then be the first. Many people were once the first in something, and this did not stop them.
And if someone has already achieved a similar result (especially if many), then you have every chance. You are no worse. Most likely even better. Now you are working on yourself, reading useful material. And this speaks of your determination. You simply cannot fail. I believe in you!
3. "It's too late"
A dangerous and very destructive thought. I liked to tell myself that too. When I was a student, this exact thought stopped me from achieving an important goal. And after many years, I finally returned to my goal and began to work towards achieving it. And I have already achieved good results. It turned out that even after many, many years it was not too late, and after many more years it would not have been too late. But then, when I was at university, it was the perfect time. It's a pity that I didn't understand this then.
If you now give up on achieving your goal, because... It seems to you that it’s “too late,” but many years later you will be very sorry and realize that it was “the right time.” Believe me.
Setting SMART goals
It is not always possible to set the right goal. When tasks are vague, it leaves us confused : how to complete them, how to measure progress.
Your goals must be precise and specific . Setting SMART goals involves being specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound.
By being able to set goals using a smart framework, you immediately get the details and context you need. Setting smart goals is not difficult. You just need to go through each letter of the abbreviation and adjust the wording of the goal.
Specificity means that the goal should not be achieved in general, but only at a specific point.
For example, you want to read a lot of books by 2030.
But setting a goal as “Read 26 books a year” will become specific and ensure that every book read is aimed at achieving that goal.
We get a ready-made action plan to achieve the goal: read two books a month.
Achievability refers to your abilities. To set realistic goals for yourself, you need to study your capabilities well.
Let's return to the example of books.
To read 2 books a month, you need to read about 25 pages a day. It takes 30 minutes.
But in reality, you only have the time and energy to read 15 pages. Question: can you achieve your goal? Not quite, unless you adjust the goal itself or the required resources.
Measurability refers to the quantification of progress. If your goal is to write 1000 posts on Instagram in 5 years to get a huge audience, then you need to calculate how many posts you need to publish per day (every 2 days).
And you definitely need to monitor the progress and the result - new subscribers. The only way you will see results is if you keep up with your plan.
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How to learn to achieve your goals: techniques and exercises
There are several methods that help you confidently move forward towards achieving your plans. After trying each of them, you can choose the best one for yourself.
How to eat an elephant
Not everyone can cope with a serious problem with one action. And there is no need to try to jump over your head. It would be wiser to divide a large problem into several small subtasks and solve them step by step. This way you will be able to overcome the psychological barrier that arises when imagining an elusive dream. And minor difficulties are much easier to deal with. In addition, in this way you can constantly monitor what is happening and track important achievements.
Cheese method
When it is not possible to solve the problem immediately, it is necessary to poke holes in it (figuratively speaking). You shouldn’t get over yourself; it’s enough to first take on the simplest actions that will help eliminate it, gradually moving on to more complex ones (larger holes). A thoroughly “corroded” task no longer seems too difficult.
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Don't stop!
Never stopping is the main key to success. The method is based on regularity. Every day, make at least the slightest effort necessary to achieve your goal. Ideally, all actions should be divided into minimal, optimal and maximum:
- Minimum: learn to write 5 Japanese characters.
- Optimal: in addition to the first point, learn 1 grammar rule.
- Maximum: watch the film in the original language in addition to the above.
Good advice: you need to study according to the drawn up plan every day, while focusing on the third point. If for health reasons or other unforeseen reasons it is not possible to complete the task completely, you must try to complete at least a small part. The most important thing is not to miss it or put it off until tomorrow.
Atmosphere of success
To achieve what you want, it is not enough just to know what you want. It is necessary to consider the current situation from all sides. It is very difficult to become a purposeful person who persistently pursues his goal among passive, sedentary people. You need to choose an environment for yourself that will constantly inspire new achievements, help you in your endeavors and cope with emerging difficulties. This applies not only to colleagues, friends and family. Books, films, information from the Internet, and the usual way of life are of great importance.
Don’t be afraid to meet people, expand your circle of friends with those who are ready for more and are able to achieve their goals. Go to interesting events, actively participate in them, and soon you will notice how more like-minded people will appear nearby. An excellent solution for finding “soul mates” are online seminars.
Constantly remind yourself of your dream. Use motivating phrases, photographs, change them regularly so that you don’t get bored. Make yourself a plan on how to achieve your goals in life: 10 effective steps and gradually implement it. In a word, create for yourself an environment in which it will be comfortable to develop.
There's nowhere to retreat
If you are determined to change, a great idea would be to indicate the price of a word. To do this, you will need to agree with a friend or colleague that if your plans are not fulfilled, you will give him something valuable (a certain amount of money, as an option). Awareness of the likely risks will motivate action when you want to give up everything and retreat. Indeed, in this situation, you can lose not only material resources, but also respect, and this is important. The only thing is that before resorting to this option, you should make sure that there is a real need to solve a certain problem.
Taking action to implement
It's never too late to start doing what you dream of. Once the plan is written down on paper, immediately begin achieving your goal. Any path begins with the first step [1].
Your first step determines the outcome you will get in both your career and life. Most people do not even take the first step , remaining at the level of “keeping the goal in mind.” Provide the situation so that your first step will definitely happen.
Remember that even a small action brings you closer to something bigger. If after a while there is a feeling that you are going in the wrong direction, the plan can be changed. But at any moment there must be a plan and work on it should not fade away.
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Personal qualities are the key to success
There are several more secrets that allow people to achieve goals in life. All of them relate to significant personal qualities, without which any attempts to achieve something would be fruitless.
- Persistence
. You cannot allow anyone (or anything) from the outside to influence your desire to achieve what you want. For example, many decades ago, Soichiro Honda did not listen to representatives of the Toyota company, who did not hire him due to “unsuitability.” As a result of his hard work and self-confidence, the largest automobile company in the world appeared - Honda. - Continuity
. This point implies a willingness to be interested in other people’s achievements, adopt other people’s experiences, and learn from other people’s mistakes. Through a series of studies, Western scientists have found that other people's mistakes are an incentive for each of us to realize our own abilities and talents. And this is very important when achieving goals. - Stress resistance.
Only the ability to steadfastly endure adversity will allow a person not to “burn out” on the way to the goal. A striking example of stress resistance is the Russian fighter Fedor Emelianenko. After three unexpected defeats in a row, this athlete did not lose faith in himself and triumphantly fought three more fights. He outlined the goal of his life - to be a champion - and strives for it, despite the defeats that have occurred
Stick to the plan
Setting goals and creating a plan to achieve them is not easy for a beginner. For an experienced person, this is pure pleasure, maybe difficult, but joyful.
The real challenge for a newbie comes when it comes to sticking to the plan. When implementation problems arise, one must not lose hope and give up.
Stay focused on the goal, find motivation and work day in and day out.
If the initial goal “didn’t work”, replace it with another one that will lead you to the planned result, albeit in a different way.
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Tools
To achieve your goals faster, use the following effective tools.
- Create the right environment. Immersing yourself in an environment of like-minded people and people who inspire you can dramatically increase your productivity.
- Be systematic. Don't miss a single day to get even one small step closer to your dream.
- Plunge yourself into the business . When you begin to implement your task, study the issue as much as possible. This can be done through training, new useful contacts, and reading specialized literature.
- Reward yourself. Remember more often why you started this business and what bonuses you will receive when you complete it. For each successfully completed stage, praise yourself and reward yourself with pleasant gifts.
- Motivation and visualization. In order not to lose interest in the planned activity, make and place a wish card in a visible place. It can be replaced with a list of benefits that you will receive if you successfully complete a specific task.
These useful tools are essential aids in implementing any plan.
Set up regular checks
When you set out to do something new, you get a rush of adrenaline and a feeling of excitement.
But, it is enough to move a couple of steps forward and this feeling begins to disappear. This is the reason why so many New Year's resolutions are never implemented or are pushed back to February.
Any goal worth achieving is not realized in an instant. It takes time. To achieve results, it is important to regularly check progress , each time to make sure that you or your team are on track.
The possibility of feedback from the world, the presence of repeated reminders, will allow you to be motivated to achieve your goal. This is very important for large tasks that take months or years to complete.
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Moving towards the goal - daily analysis: Are we going there?
It's not enough to just set goals. You need to work with this every day. You need to move towards your goals every day. If we want to succeed, we must never give up on our success. You need to analyze every day and ask yourself questions. Are we going the right way? Are we moving in the right direction?
First thing in the morning, you should open your notebook (or diary) and look at your goals: What can I do today to achieve my goals?
And in the evening, analyze: What did I do today for my dreams and goals? Something like this. This is the only way we will get to our final point. And may everyone be happy! =)))
What to do if the goal is not achieved by the appointed date? Of course this happens. And very often. There are various force majeure circumstances. Nothing wrong with that. You just need to reconsider priorities, analyze situations, and change the date and implementation plan.
Just when you are about to get rich... Either your panties will tear, or you will run out of salt... ))))))))))
A very good tool for achieving goals is a dream album, or better yet, a dream poster. The dream poster should be constantly visible. For example, above your bed.
We design the dream poster in the form of pictures, photographs, for example, downloaded from the Internet or cut out from magazines. The pictures should be directly related to your dreams and goals. We paste them onto our poster and be sure to put a date under each picture.
The very date by which your dream should be realized and a certain goal achieved. This will motivate you every day and force you to move towards your intended results.
The famous actor and comedian Jim Carey, for example, when he first arrived to conquer Hollywood penniless, wrote himself a check for 1,000,000 (one million) dollars. This motivated him to achieve his goal at all costs and earn that million. Today he has much more to his credit.
You will definitely be interested! I wrote a separate article about how to start a business from scratch in the modern world (will open in a new tab).
Jack Canfield is an American writer, a leader of all kinds of motivational seminars, a corporate trainer and an entrepreneur, who orders himself a huge bill worth 100,000 (one hundred thousand) dollars. While writing the motivational book Chicken Soup for the Soul, he hung this bill above his bed. Where do you think? On the ceiling. Thus, every morning when he woke up, his goal was always before his eyes. By the way, a great book. A global bestseller translated into many languages around the world. I recommend reading it.
Another very interesting article about building a business on the Internet: Where you can make money on the Internet without cheating or investing. 100% methods, secrets, tricks and cases (will open in a new tab).
Celebrate victories, even the smallest ones
A good idea for self-management to achieve a goal is to reward yourself. Reward yourself every time you complete even the smallest of steps .
Even the simple act of crossing out a task from a notepad can bring pleasure as good as a cup of delicious coffee. As a result, you will be charged with a small dose of joy in life, and fulfilling your dreams will seem like an unusually large source of high.
Do not think that until the goal has been achieved, you need to wait to celebrate small victories. Get rid of such thoughts, this is a very stupid idea. Of course, you shouldn’t set off fireworks, but you definitely need to learn to just be happy.
Small victories are the main source of energy to move on and stick to the right direction.
Here's what's going on in your head: A brain chemical called dopamine spikes when you're anticipating something important (like doing something you're intending to do) and gets a boost. This is motivation for the brain.
And by setting ourselves smaller tasks and then thanking ourselves for completing them, we increase the number of dopamine surges. These surges encourage us to stay in the resource.
How to achieve your goal
The global goal of every person is to be useful and happy, to live in pleasure. Conventionally, goals can be divided into:
- tactical, short-term;
- strategic, global;
Find your comfort zone and start by defining your goal. It is not an obligation, not a heavy burden that hangs over you. What do you want from life? Find your main goal that will make your life fun. Don’t be discouraged if you want a lot, but little is available.
And do not define the main goal with such a temptation as money. Money is not a goal, money is an artificial attribute of achieving a goal. After all, you need what you can buy with them.
