By Arina Nikitina

Setting and reaching your financial goals probably seems like an overwhelming task. If you break down large financial goals into smaller, accessible goals, you’ll have an easier time achieving them. Follow these five simple steps to reaching your financial objectives.

Step One: To set and achieve financial goals, you must understand your finances. This is the most significant piece of financial success. To comprehend your finances you must know your FICO score. This three digit number is your financial footprint that will affect car loans, home loans, and credit card applications. Go to www.myfico.com to obtain your score.

After you understand your FICO score, you need to know how you spend your money. Take one week to jot down all of your purchases and look at the amount of money that is coming in as opposed to the amount that is being spent. Are you increasing or decreasing your amount of debt?

Step Two: Write down your financial goals with a realistic amount of time it will take to reach each goal. Decide which goal you want to obtain first. You won’t be able to tackle all goals at the same time, and you don’t want to set unachievable goals.

Step Three: Look at the time frame for your prioritized goal. If it’s a long-term goal, you need to write down smaller goals to reach the long-term goal. For example, your long-term goal may be that you want to save three thousand dollars in one year in case you get laid off.

The smaller goals to reach this long-term goal would be to save two-hundred and fifty dollars each month. The person setting this goal would need to look at their spending habits and find places to save money. Maybe that person would cut their dining out to three times a month instead of eight times a month. Or maybe the person would spend one hundred dollars on clothes instead of three hundred and fifty dollars on clothes.

Step Four: Evaluate yourself. Depending on your short-term goals, at the end of each day, week, or month you should evaluate your progress. If you didn’t reach your short-term goal, you should find out where the failure occurred. Did you eat out more during the month of December due to the holidays? Did you spend more on personal expenses, because you threw a baby shower for your sister?

You’re not going to always reach each goal. Don’t give up if you don’t succeed the first time. See if you can make up for the goal that you didn’t reach or reassess your long-term goal. Add a few more months to make your long-term goal more realistic.

Step Five: Success. When you reach your goal, take time to evaluate the process that you went through to succeed. Give yourself credit for making changes in your finances to better yourself and decide how you can apply your motivation and success to other financial goals.

Set the next financial goal and complete the same five steps.

By Dev Maritz

Have you ever had the feeling that you were meant to do more with your life and you need to achieve your goals? You are sitting at your desk, consistently looking at the clock and hoping that the day can just end. The next day you are back doing the exact same thing and wishing becomes your second nature.

Well, I have been there a million times and every time I reached that place, I surprisingly repeat my thoughts: ” I have to do something to get out of this routine”. Although that sounded promising, action speaks louder than words and that was a phrase that I needed to adapt to fast.

Now sometimes when you do find yourself in the fast lane, you intend to make a good impression for the first few miles by going as quickly as possible. Inevitably you slow down due to restrictions or obstacles in your way. What occurs next is what nine out of ten people experience- The slow down and then the eventual full stop.

Those perpetual bad habits put you right back into “the routine” and eliminate your goals. Now you are probably waiting for the right moment to start up your enthusiasm again and eagerly need to achieve something. How do you get away from slipping back into the old routines? Here are 5 crucial steps to unleash that power of consistency

1. As much as dreaming is a very healthy approach, you need to literally write it down

Do not just write it down on a piece of paper and keep it in the drawer. You need to break it down in years, months, weeks and days! That way, you will know exactly how much effort needs to go into achieving your goals on a daily basis. Put it up on the wall and study it every day.

2. List all your obstacles and temporary defeats that will get in the way

Remember, do not be afraid of failing, because it is literally just a short-term phase! If you do list all the possibilities that can stop you from achieving your goals, you will be more prepared for them when they arrive. Do not expect a smooth ride all the way to your goals. That will display ignorance.

3. Tell close friends and relatives of your goals and the exact date that you will conquer it.

By telling friends and family, you have an obligation to fulfill. Ask them to help you stay motivated and to check up on you every week or so pertaining to your progress.

4. Take small but consistent steps daily.

The most common error that people make is that they want to get to their goals quickly but give up due to impatience. A very good example of what not to do is:

Working towards your goals 3 hours a day for a week; however, the second week you only work at it for 15 minutes a day. Rather be more consistent and set a 30 minute cap on it daily -NO MATTER WHAT!

5. Revise your work after each week and month to analyze if you are on schedule.

This will allow you to learn from any mistakes you might have made or where you could have been more consistent. Only then can you take it forward and not repeat it again.

Continue following these 5 steps rigorously and you will soon be at the top of your game!

By Hilton Johnson

You cannot pick up a book or participate in a training program today without the author or instructor teaching the power of goal setting. Yet, most people today spend more time planning a two-week vacation than planning their lives by setting goals. It’s been said that achieving goals is not a problem–it’s SETTING goals that is the problem. People just don’t do it. They leave their lives to chance…and usually end up broke by the time they reach retirement.

I thought that since this is such an important ingredient for developing a successful network marketing business, this was a good time to share with you some of the greatest thoughts about goal setting that I’ve discovered over the years.

So, here goes…The Top 10 Best Ideas For Setting Goals:

1. Make A List Of Your Values

What’s really important to you? Your family? Your religion? Your leisure time? Your hobbies? Decide on what your most important values in life are and then make sure that the goals you set are designed to include and enhance them.

2. Begin With The End In Mind

Tom Watson, the founder of IBM was once asked what he attributed the phenomenal success of IBM to and he said it was three things:
The first thing was that he created a very clear image in his mind of what he wanted his company to look like when it was done. He then asked himself how would a company like that have to act on a day-to-day basis. And then in the very beginning of building his company, he began to act that way.

3. Project Yourself Into The Future

The late, great Earl Nightingale created a whole new industry (self-improvement) after a 20-year study on what made people successful. The bottom-line result of his research was simply, “We Become What We Think About.”

Whatever thoughts dominate our minds most of the time are what we become. That’s why goal setting is so critical in achieving success because it keeps us focused on what’s really important to us. He then said that the easiest way to reach our goals is to pretend that we had ALREADY achieved our goals.

That is, begin to walk, talk and act as though we are already experiencing the success we seek. Then, those things will come to us naturally through the power of the subconscious mind.

4. Write Down The 10 Things You Want This Year

By making a list of the things that are important to you, you begin to create images in your mind. It’s been said that your mind will actually create chaos if necessary to make images become a reality. Because of this, the list of ten things will probably result in you achieving at least eight of them within the year.

5. Create Your Storyboard

Get a piece of poster board and attach it to a wall in your office or home where you will see it often. As you go through magazines, brochures, etc. and you see the pictures of the things you want, cut them out and glue them to your storyboard.

In other words, make yourself a collage of the goals that excite you…knowing full well that as you look at them everyday, they will soon be yours.

6. The Three Most Important Things

Decide on three things that you want to achieve before you die. Then work backwards listing three things you want in the next twenty years, ten years, five years, this year, this month, this week and finally, the three most important things you want to accomplish today.

7. Ask Yourself Good Questions

As you think about your goals, instead of WISHING for them to come true, ask yourself HOW and WHAT CAN YOU DO to make them come true. The subconscious mind will respond to your questions far greater than just making statements or making wishes.

8. Focus On One Project At A Time

One of the greatest mistakes people make in setting goals is trying to work on too many things at one time. There is tremendous power in giving laser beam focused attention to just one idea, one project or one objective at a time.

9. Write Out An “Ideal Scenario”

Pretend that you are a newspaper reporter that has just finished an interview about the outstanding success that you’ve achieved and the article is now in the newspaper. How would it read? What would be the headline? Write the article yourself, projecting yourself into the future as though it had already happened. Describe the activities of your daily routine now that are very successful. Don’t forget the headline. (Example: “Jane Doe Wins Top Network Marketing Award Of The Decade.”)

10. Pray & Meditate

As you get into bed each evening, think about your goal before you drop off to sleep. Get a very clear colorful image in your mind of seeing yourself doing the things you’ll be doing after you’ve reached your major goal. (Remember to include your values.) And then begin to ask and demand for these things through meditation and prayer.

By Paul J. Meyer

Specific
Measurable
Attainable
Realistic
Timely

Specific - A specific goal has a much greater chance of being accomplished than a general goal. To set a specific goal you must answer the six “W” questions:

*Who: Who is involved?
*What: What do I want to accomplish?
*Where: Identify a location.
*When: Establish a time frame.
*Which: Identify requirements and constraints.
*Why: Specific reasons, purpose or benefits of accomplishing the goal.

EXAMPLE: A general goal would be, “Get in shape.” But a specific goal would say, “Join a health club and workout 3 days a week.”

Measurable - Establish concrete criteria for measuring progress toward the attainment of each goal you set. When you measure your progress, you stay on track, reach your target dates, and experience the exhilaration of achievement that spurs you on to continued effort required to reach your goal.

To determine if your goal is measurable, ask questions such as……How much? How many? How will I know when it is accomplished?

Attainable - When you identify goals that are most important to you, you begin to figure out ways you can make them come true. You develop the attitudes, abilities, skills, and financial capacity to reach them. You begin seeing previously overlooked opportunities to bring yourself closer to the achievement of your goals.

You can attain most any goal you set when you plan your steps wisely and establish a time frame that allows you to carry out those steps. Goals that may have seemed far away and out of reach eventually move closer and become attainable, not because your goals shrink, but because you grow and expand to match them. When you list your goals you build your self-image. You see yourself as worthy of these goals, and develop the traits and personality that allow you to possess them.

Realistic - To be realistic, a goal must represent an objective toward which you are both willing and able to work. A goal can be both high and realistic; you are the only one who can decide just how high your goal should be. But be sure that every goal represents substantial progress. A high goal is frequently easier to reach than a low one because a low goal exerts low motivational force. Some of the hardest jobs you ever accomplished actually seem easy simply because they were a labor of love.

Your goal is probably realistic if you truly believe that it can be accomplished. Additional ways to know if your goal is realistic is to determine if you have accomplished anything similar in the past or ask yourself what conditions would have to exist to accomplish this goal.

Timely - A goal should be grounded within a time frame. With no time frame tied to it there’s no sense of urgency. If you want to lose 10 lbs, when do you want to lose it by? “Someday” won’t work. But if you anchor it within a timeframe, “by May 1st”, then you’ve set your unconscious mind into motion to begin working on the goal.

T can also stand for Tangible - A goal is tangible when you can experience it with one of the senses, that is, taste, touch, smell, sight or hearing. When your goal is tangible you have a better chance of making it specific and measurable and thus attainable.

by Glen Hopkins

WHY DO WE NEED GOALS?
Goals give you direction in all areas of your life Personal, Career, Spiritual, Material, and Contribution. Goals give you a purpose in life. A reason to get up early in the morning and go to bed late at night. Goals will put drive and passion into your life.

Not having goals is similar to sailing a ship across the Atlantic without a map. Goals, like maps, help you get to your destination much faster than sailing though life aimlessly.

HOW DO I SET GOALS?
First you must dream! Dream of everything you want, and have always wanted in every facet of your life. There are no limits.

Ask yourself, “What would I attempt to do, if I knew I could not fail?” “What would I want for my life if I knew I could have it?”

Allow yourself to dream like you did as a child. Let your imagination run wild! Brainstorm. Write your ideas down on paper and decide which ones are the most important to you.

Now its is time to define your dream precisely. Which of these goals are most important to you, and why? On a fresh piece of paper, write down one goal at a time. Beside the heading, write down a deadline for achieving that goal. Be sure that the deadline is realistic.

To help achieve the long term goal, set a time line using short term goals. For example, if your long term personal goal is to loose 60 lbs. in one year, set short term goals leading up to the long term goal. In this example you might set short term goal to loose 5 lbs. per month. This is an effective way to evaluating your progress helping you to determine if you have to make changes to your action plan.

THE SECRETS OF ACHIEVING YOUR GOALS
1. Make your goals inspirational.
You need to set goals grand enough to challenge yourself. Remember that if you don’t have to push yourself beyond your current limits to reach your goals, you’re not really achieving anything. To truly be successful, and reach your true potential, you must constantly push yourself to move outside of your “comfort zone”.

2. Define your goals with clarity.
Be precise in what you want. The more clearly defined your goal is, the easier it will be to attain. For example, let’s say you want to buy a house. To say you want to buy a house is not enough. To find a house you’ll really be happy with, you have to specify exactly what you want. Do you want to live in the country or the city? Do you want a two story or a bungalow? Do you want a brick house or a wood house? How many square feet do you want? Do you want a pool? How much can you afford? As you can see there are many questions to ask. The more questions you ask yourself, and are able to answer, the clearer your goal will be. Once you know the exact outcome you want, you will be able to create an action plan that will ensure your success.

3. Write a paragraph.
Write a paragraph or two describing exactly why you absolutely must attain your goal. Write down all the reasons why you are committed to attain your goal. Feel the emotion stir up inside of you. Feel the passion and drive. This will bring the goal to life!

How would you feel one year from now if you were to attain all your goals? How would that make you feel about yourself? Would your feel proud? Would your self-esteem be increased? Would you feel unstoppable? Would you feel more confident in your ability? What results would you get from reaching your goals? Would you have greater job security? Would you be up for a promotion? Would you be earning more money? Would your family and friends be proud of you? How would that make you feel?

4. Write another paragraph!
This paragraph or two should explain what will happen if you don’t attain your goal. How will you feel? What will happen to your lifestyle? Will you be embarrassed? Will you loose self-esteem? Will you loose your job? The more emotion you can put behind the reasons why you must succeed and why you must not fail, the more committed to attaining your goals you will become.

5. Constantly evaluate your progress.
Having an action plan is not enough. The captain in the previous example will have to constantly evaluate his progress in order to be sure he is on target. Unforeseen obstacles are sure to arise, such as a hailstorm, or increased southerly winds. As a result, he may have to increase his speed or guide the boat in a more westerly direction. In other words, notice what is working and what is not. If an approach is not working, don’t waste your time with it. Change your approach.

6. Never lose sight of your goal.
Take the time to review your goals every morning when you get up and every night before you go to bed. This will keep them fresh in your mind. If you think reviewing your goals twice a day is too much to ask, maybe you should reevaluate what it is you want. Ask yourself, “How important is it to me that I attain my goals?”

7. Don’t procrastinate.
Procrastination is a “silent killer”. Understand that the only way to achieve your goals is to take action! Knowledge means nothing if you don’t apply it. How many people have you come across with an unbelievable amount of education working a mediocre job? The world is full of people who don’t apply their knowledge. On the other hand, chances are you know of people with less educational background who apply everything they learn. These people are usually the ones who are most successful in all areas of their lives.

Do something right now that will help you to achieve your goals. There is no time like the present! Get the ball rolling. Each step you take brings you one step closer to the life you want. Remember the motto, “The road to Someday, leads to the town of Nowhere”. Someday is today!

THE BENEFITS OF GOAL SETTING
You will notice an increase in your energy level as you begin to live your life with passion – the passion that having a meaningful goal will give you. You will be in control of your life and the direction you are heading. Your life does not have to be determined by fate alone. With goals, you create your destiny. Goals give you a purpose in life. A reason to get up early and go to bed late.

EVIDENCE
The following are examples of individuals who have achieved their goals. How has it changed their lives and possibly the lives of others?

Mother Teresa
Nelson Mandella
Michael Jordan
Mark McGwire

What goals have you achieved that have changed your life, and possibly the lives of others? Maybe it was,

Education
Relationship
New car
Job interview
Weight loss
Exercise program

Everything you do is a cause set in motion. No matter how small the act may seem, it will ultimately have an effect on your life.

OBSERVATIONS
You will soon notice your mind will become a magnet for attracting any information or opportunity that can help you achieve your goals more rapidly. For example, have you ever played the game, “Punch Buggy?” If not, it goes something like this. When driving in a car with a friend, the first person to see a Volkswagen “Bug” gets to punch the other person in the shoulder while exclaiming the color of the car “Punch Buggy Red”! Once you begin playing this game, you will be surprised to find how quickly your arm becomes sore! That’s right, all of a sudden you will become a magnet for Volkswagen “Bugs”! Everywhere you look, you will see one.

The same thing is true of your goals. When you know exactly what you are looking for, it will mysteriously present itself. This is based on the phenomenon that You Get What You Focus On.

Remember to “enjoy the ride. This is the key to a successful life. There is little point in only allowing yourself to enjoy life at the point of achieving a goal. If that were the case, think of all the time that would be spent not fully enjoying your life. Learn to happily achieve rather than achieving to be happy. After all, whether you are conscious of it or not, the majority of your time is spent striving to achieve goals. Such as, getting up in the morning, getting to work on time, making time to see a friend of loved one, and so on. Although these “goals” are pretty exciting, let’s not forget the big ones. The ones we create with passion and drive. The goals that can truly change our lives if we commit to pursuing them.

SUMMARY
If you are dissatisfied with some aspect of your life, get excited. All it means is you now what you don’t want. Now its is time to determine exactly what you do want. Clarify exactly what it is you want and create a time frame for getting it. Write one or two paragraphs why you must attain your goals and one or two paragraphs why you must not fail to attain your goals. Keep a close eye on your progress. If what you are doing is not working, change your approach. Review your goals twice daily. This will keep you focused.

The time to change your life is now. Not tomorrow, not the next day. Take time to invest in the future you want. You have the power to create your own destiny!

By John Koze

For some time now the SMART techniques for goal setting has been used by authors, trainers, coaches, etc. to create a foundation for actualizing goals. They work and have proven themselves over time so that they are published and reiterated a thousand times over. They truly are “smart” - specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and tangible or timely.

As a trainer in employment transition training skills I have discovered that goal setting is a mandatory topic in every workshop that I facilitate. The group is always challenged by me to be very specific with their goals. This is where the SMART technique proves to be very effective. I have added a new dimension to this effective process. It is called the SMARTEST goal setting technique that I use to fire up one’s commitment to a higher level of successful goal setting.

Engaging!

In other words when your values and goals align they form a passionate attitude that light up the room when you speak of your goals. This will engage people in your dreams and attract tangible networking opportunities, ideas, advice etc. People are drawn to passionate goal setters. In my workshops I have the participants perform a self-esteem exercise that re-familiarizes them to their talents and accomplishments. This exercise builds confidence so when goal setting is discussed they are more affirming about themselves and their goals. It realigns them with their values hence engaging them into their dreams and ultimately enrolling others with their support. Your enthusiasm is contagious!

Shifting Goals!

There is an important notice that can be placed on every human being. It would read…”During the course of your life the most constant thing you will experience is change”. Your goals will shift. I venture to say that if they don’t you are not working your goal, they are not “smart” enough or they lack focus. Bold statement and I know there are always exceptions to the rule. I trust when you are so focused on a goal it draws in other possibilities that can shift your original goal. You might still hit the bull’s eye but it will on a different target. Knowing this can take the pressure off those who are perfectionist or believe with an unhealthy vigor that they must stick to a particular goal. Be flexible! Caution with shifting goals - I am not endorsing constantly changing your goals every other week or month. I’m talking about how life circumstances and your focus attracts opportunities not originally seen at the time of the creation of the original goal. I do congratulate those that stick with a goal for years, achieve them and are happy. This is also a possibility.

Team Effort!

Part of my responsibilities as a trainer is to encourage that the participants enroll a person that will hold them accountable to their goals - another words an “accountability coach”. Our world is wrought with a lack of accountability. There are people who can not follow through with agreements set with others let alone the agreements they set for themselves. Through a team effort you will be more sensitive to upholding your goals for you will report your successes and failures to your coach. I realize that friends or family members are usually chosen as part of the support team and are not professional coaches. Therefore, I give them some easy guidelines that will make them more effective as an amateur coach. Tell your coach not to accept reasons or excuses for a goal that was not accomplished. Instead they can assist you in renegotiating the goal that was broken. In other words recommit to it if there still is value in it. Conversely, celebrate your successes when goals are achieved. Also, meet with or call your team or coach on a regular basis with a set appointment. This adds more structure to your goal and increases the chances of success.

There is no better life than that which is lived in pure self-expression. You might as well get the most out of your self-expression by knowing what constitutes effective goal setting. Therefore, infuse into your goal setting regimen an engaging attitude, acceptance of the shifting human condition and a system that allows for accountability through a team that supports. You will add structure, vitality and commitment to the fulfillment of your dreams and be an example for others to follow.

by Ken Burgess

It’s sad but true that many people are failing in reaching their goals!

Even though they sit down and ask themselves what they really want in life, write it down, break their goals into small action steps and take action - they won’t achieve most of their goals.

Do you know why they’ll fail? No?

It’s because they forgot to identify the *Benefits* they will gain by reaching their goals!

What does that mean? Let me give you a simple example…

What happens when someone offers you a product? When are you going to buy it? Are you interested in the features of that product?

No, not at all! What you are interested in and influences you in whether or not you are going to buy is to know the *benefits* of this particular product.

You want to know “what is in it for me?” And the same happens to you when you set up your goals. You will not be committed to your goals one hundred percent if you are not clear on the benefits you will gain by reaching them.

When you are not sure of the benefits it’s *very* difficult to maintain the necessary persistence, dedication and enthusiasm!

So, you always have to ask yourself *why* you want to achieve a particular goal. If you are clear on the benefits, you are willing to pay the price. Instead of setting up a goal like “I want to have a successful business,” and then just taking action, you have to identify the benefits.

-Imagine how it will feel like to have a successful business
-Imagine how your family and friends will admire you
-Imagine how you make smart investments
-Imagine taking that long vacation you always wanted

By doing so you will have the necessary momentum that keeps you right on track until your goal is reached. The only difference between those who make it and those who don’t is desire. And benefits and rewards create this desire! Now you have the chance to belong to those who *make it.*

by Dr. Philip E. Humbert

It’s been said that everyone has goals, whether we know it or not. We have goals to keep our current job, or to get a different one. We have goals to save for the future, or to travel, take a vacation, or purchase the things we need and want to make our lives more enjoyable. An important distinction, however, is that top achievers are very intentional and focused on their goals, while many of the rest of us are not.

Top achievers know that the wording, structure, timing and format of a goal can make it’s achievement much easier – or far more difficult. Top achievers understand the basic skills for setting and reaching their goals, every time! They know how to design goals that create success. Here are the 10 most important steps to set and achieve your goals:

1. Reachable goals are SPECIFIC. Top achievers know that to reach their goals, the brain must know exactly, precisely, what they are trying to accomplish. Never word a goal with vague terms like “some” or “a little bit”, or “more”. Be specific! If you want to lose 8 pounds and reach a weight of 175, specify those exact numbers. If you want to save $200 this month, be exact. Your brain can help you accomplish almost anything if it knows precisely what you are aiming for.

2. Reachable goals are SIMPLE. Many people describe their goals in complex terms of retiring on the beach in Hawaii, with nice cars and lots of money, and…. Their list goes on and on. Any ONE of those things is a great goal, but the combination becomes over whelming and the brain gets confused. If you want to retire in Hawaii, just say so! If you want to increase your sales by 10% this month, say so! Keep your goals simple, clear, and focused.

3. Reachable goals are SIGNIFICANT. No one can muster the enthusiasm, hard work and courage to reach a goal they don’t really care about. A reachable goal is one you really, really, REALLY want! It’s something that will change your life, enhance your health or wealth, and make you proud. It gets your juices flowing, gets you up in the morning, and keeps you going all day long, because it is important! Set goals that are worth achieving!

4. Reachable goals are STRATEGIC. High achievers know that the best goals accomplish many great outcomes, all at one time. Running a 10K race will almost certainly: 1) feel great! 2) help you lose weight. 3) lower your cholesterol level 4) strengthen your heart 5) lower you risk of heart disease 6) increase your energy and stamina, and 7) improve your outlook. Design your goals to strategically impact as many areas of your life as possible. You’ll have more reasons to reach your goal and more excitement when you do!

5. Reachable goals are MEASURABLE. A goal without a measurable outcome is just a pipe-dream. You can’t achieve a pound of “happiness” or 6 inches of “self-esteem”, but you CAN get a new job. You CAN run a mile in under 7 minutes, or do 100 sit-ups. Someone has wisely observed that, “What gets measured, gets done.” Define your goals in terms of height, weight, dollars, inches, or hours. Then measure your progress until you achieve your desired outcome.

6. Reachable goals are RATIONAL. To reach your goal, you will need a plan, a path, and a vehicle for getting there. Your goals must make sense! When you explain them to friends and family, your goals should create excitement, draw support, and encouragement. Your goals should be just out of reach, but not out of sight! You want to stretch to be your best, not strain after impossible dreams. Set goals you CAN and WILL achieve!

7. Reachable goals are TANGIBLE. Choose goals that you can see, hear, smell or touch. Go for things you will enjoy and that you can clearly visualize. The brain has hard time going for “financial security”, but it can visualize a bank statement with nice, large numbers on it! Define your goals in terms that excite the senses, then go for it with all your heart!

8. Reachable goals are WRITTEN. High achievers always know precisely what they want, because they’ve written it down. Often, they write a short description of their goals every single morning, as a personal reminder of their priorities and their objectives. The act of writing your goals down vastly increases your chance of success. Write it down! Then, keep your notes where you can see and read them every day.

9. Reachable goals are SHARED. We are far more likely to stick to our plan and reach our goals if we know our friends and family support us. Being part of a team increases our determination, our stamina, and our courage. Caution: Never share your goals with anyone who may ridicule, tease or discourage you! The world is full of doubters and you have no time for them. But, find a support team, a group of cheerleaders, and a coach who will encourage you every step of the way. High achievers count on and work with other winners!

10. Reachable goals are CONSISTENT WITH YOUR VALUES. One of the biggest reasons people fail to achieve their goals is that they have conflict between their behavior and their values. However, when your values and your goals are in agreement, there is no stopping you! Clarify your values first, then set simple, specific, measurable, tangible, written goals that are consistent with those values. You will achieve them, every single time!

by Paul Christenbury

Goal Setting is an extremely powerful technique for accomplishment, but for Goal Setting to really be effective requires more than just writing down what we want to achieve. This article will present important steps that will help to define and achieve goals with more success.

Benefits of Goal Setting

Goal setting helps us determine our priorities, get organized, make big decisions, and realize our dreams. Almost all motivational experts incorporate goal setting as an important part of their programs. Zig Ziglar, when speaking of the importance of goals, poses the question “Are you a wandering generality or a meaningful specific”. I personally became so sold on the power of goals that I created a website called MyGoalManager.com. The objective of the website is to direct the user through the entire Goal process from definition to achievement. This Goal Achievement process entails the following requirements:

1. Well formed Goal Statements
2. Breaking goals down into manageable Steps
3. Motivation and Commitment
4. Reminders and Keeping on track
5. Frequent Review and Re-assessment

1. Well formed Goal Statements

The Goal Statement forms the basis for the entire process so careful attention should be placed on formulating a clear and accurate goal statement. A good way to remember how a goal statement should be defined is the old S.M.A.R.T. acronym used by many experts in goal setting. SMART stands for:

Specific
Measurable
Action-Oriented
Realistic
Time and Resource Constrained

The Goal should be specific enough so that we know exactly what we are striving for, measurable so we can tell exactly when the goal has been reached, action-oriented to indicate an activity that will produce results, realistic in that it is practical and can be achieved, and time and resources constrained meaning that it has a definite deadline for completion and realizes limited availability of resources. The goal statement “Increase sales 25% by the end of the fiscal year without increasing advertising spending” is an example that follows these rules.

2. Breaking down Goals into manageable Steps

Once we have a well-formed Goal Statement we need some direction to follow to achieve this Goal. The creation of Goal Steps gives us a list of the important things that need to be done to achieve the Goal, an action plan, and also allows us to track our progress towards the goal. While the goal “Increase sales 25% by the end of the fiscal year without increasing advertising spending” is a great goal statement, this is a monumental task without being broken down into smaller detailed steps.

3. Motivation and Commitment

Motivation and commitment are what make us strive to achievement. They give us the push, desire, and resolve to complete all of the other steps in the Goal process. This motivation can be obtained by developing a statement that creates a high level of emotion and energy that guarantees achievement. Commitment is what sets us on direct course to reach our goals and creates costly negative consequences for failure.

4. Reminders and Keeping on Track

Reaching our goals requires persistence and regular attention. We need some sort of system to keep us reminded and accountable. MyGoalManager.com uses a combination reminder emails, calendars, and reports to keep users organized and on track. If some accountability system is not used then we are likely to loose sight and fail.

5. Frequent Review and Re-assessment

Goal Setting is definitely an ongoing process that is accomplished over time. When we first sit down and start to define goals it can seem like a difficult and daunting task but over time it begins to get much easier. Patience is required. All goals due in the next year should be reviewed at least once a week and daily if possible. The great thing about frequent review is that this forces us to make big decisions and determine priorities in our life. We should keep watch for goals that aren’t being achieved on time or for goals on which we keep extending the deadline.

by John Dilemme

I know this is a strange follow-up to my last article, but stick with me. Can you relate to setting goals and not achieving them? Have you ever been frustrated by trying to set goals when you know in your heart that you will never reach them? You even say to yourself, “Who am I kidding? I will never accomplish this goal.” That’s why I’m here to tell you that goals are truly damaging for your future, because you beat yourself up over never reaching those goals.

On the other hand, goals are very important. Don’t let me confuse you with this just read this carefully. Goals are imperative when you have a strong “Why” in place. Let’s parallel this to a ten-story glass building that is shiny and beautiful to the eye. It towers over the city and creates the skyline. Now let’s imagine that the building was built by a group of amateur carpenters in one day and had a poor foundation. It looked very nice, but wasn’t solid. One day a little bird flew smack into that building, and guess what happened? That little, tiny sparrow knocked down that massive building that looked amazingly strong and powerful from the outside. Why? The foundation was pathetic, and there were no true roots to hold that building in place. No one paid the price for that building to hold its own in the real world despite how it looked to the average person.

Let’s tie that into your goals. Your “Why” is your foundation and your roots. Your “Why” must be stronger and bigger than you are right now! You must internalize your “Why” and know exactly “Why” you do what you do everyday to reach your goals. Too many people have set the goals of making a lot of money. Can you relate to that? Have you ever set the goal of making a certain amount of money in a month, and then at the end of the month you haven’t made a dime more? Here’s the reason why. You must know “Why” you want to earn that amount of money for that month. It’s not the money that drives you…it’s your “Why”! What are you going to do with that money? Pay your car payment, donate it to your church, buy your child a new toy…“Why” have you set that financial goal for that month? Another thing, you should never set a goal of “making” a certain amount of money in a month. Instead, after you know “Why” you are setting that financial goal, then set a goal of EARNING that money not MAKING that money. Remember, no one paid that price for that beautiful ten-story building, and it fell. You must be willing to pay the price and EARN your way to your goal.

Let’s go over this again. Goals are damaging to your future. If you don’t have your “Why” in place, then you have no foundation to support you as you head down your success path to completing that goal. Without that foundation, you will give up and be discouraged from ever setting goals for yourself again. It doesn’t matter what type of goal – physical, financial, social, etc. – you must know “Why” you are going pay the price to achieve that goal. If not, then that goal could damage your life instead of assisting you in ultimately achieving success that you’ve always dreamed about. Commit today to develop your “Why” before setting any more goals!

Let me share 3 questions with you that will help you “Find Your Why”.

1. If you did not have to worry about finances or going to your job on Monday morning, then what would you do?

2. If you had so much money that you had to give it away, what would you do with it? Who would you give it to and why?

3. Do you enjoy life? If so, why? If not, then why not? Remember, your past does not control you! Your future should drive you, because you see yourself successful!

After you develop your “Why” and set your goals, you will encounter obstacles and challenges like that little bird that hit that huge building. If your “Why” is strong enough, then unlike that building you will stand firm against whatever tries to stop you from achieving that goal. You will not be knocked down!

Remember, goals are damaging if you don’t have a foundational “Why” in place. I challenge you today to ask yourself those three questions, develop your “Why” and then set your goals.