Countless people are seeking tips on setting goals, so many in fact that big-name motivational speakers have made fortunes off the subject via books and seminars.
Most of the advice they will provide, and most of the content included within this website, will not surprise you, because goal setting is based on common sense principles.
But by listening to others speak about the subject, or reading books and tips based on setting goals, these miscellaneous common sense principles come together and form an easily duplicated course of action or source of motivation.You can learn more about how you can make the most out of your life here – a wonderful article from Sociotelligence.
It would be impossible to compile all the various tips on setting goals into one article for there are so many different types of goals and methods by which you can achieve them.
This article will provide some general tips on setting goals that you can learn about in more detail elsewhere.
Select The Right Goals For You
Too many times people will set goals that either society or people close to them believe to be proper choices, but this is an extremely shaky foundation upon which to build an achievement. If you are not passionate about your goal, you will not be motivated to see it through to the end, good times and bad.
Anyone that has lost weight, or has wanted to, knows all too well that it’s a difficult and often lifetime struggle. Temptation surrounds us in the forms of delicious junk food, and many of us a lack the time to really prepare healthy foods or undergo an exercise program due to our hectic schedules.
It takes discipline and a strong sense of motivation to resist outside temptations and distractions. Unless you truly want to lose weight, you will most likely lose a few pounds, give up and then gain more than you even lost.
Never select a goal that you do not feel passionate about.
Break Goals Up Into Mini-Goals
Breaking your goals up into easily accomplished smaller goals is one of the most important tips on setting goals that you will ever hear.
Rome wasn’t built in a day, and neither will your long-term goals. Continuing with the weight loss example, if you set a goal to lose 100 pounds then chances are good you will lose steam long before the finish line has been reached.
On the other hand if you break that exhaustive goal into 10-pound increments, you will always be just around the corner to accomplishing a mini-goal.
Each time you do accomplish one step of the journey, you will become highly motivated to continue forward, and before you know it the mini-steps will have lead you to the once unthinkable grand goal of 100 pounds.
Expect Failure
None of us want to think that we might fail during our quest for self-improvement, but the reality is advancement is very rarely a road paved solely with successes.
There are ups and downs in every journey, and it’s important to realize that when you set out on it so that when adversity or failure does rear its ugly head, you do not allow it to frustrate or paralyze you. If you fail, pick yourself up off the ground, dust yourself off, and continue trying.
Now this shouldn’t be abused to the point where you become flippant about failure, otherwise you’ll never learn from your mishaps. Always hate failure, but never kick yourself too hard when you do fail because even the most successful people fail. The difference is they look upon failure as a learning experience and continue trying rather than give up like so many.
The Devil Is In The Details
A detailed goals worksheet and/or outline is almost essential for successful goal setting. Such written blueprints force you to consider potential pitfalls you may encounter along the way, as well as figure out solutions that will help you get around them.
Did you ever wonder why so many successful politicians and business tycoons keep private journals and detailed task lists? Because it works! If you ignore all the other tips on setting goals contained within these articles and only heed one, let this be the one.
Build A Support Group
A support group need not be an organization of like-minded people; it can be as simple as the morale support of a single spouse or close friend.
Sometimes it’s all-too-easy to become distracted or frustrated during our quest for self-improvement, so having a friend nearby to talk us through such issues and help keep us on track can be invaluable.
Reduce Your Stress
Often the topic of stress reduction is ignored in articles, books and material that offer tips on setting goals, but it’s an important part of successful goal achievement. Stress can eat away motivation and morale quicker than greased lightning, so it’s generally not a good idea to initiate a difficult goal in the midst of a high-stress period.
Since stress is not something that can be avoided, it’s also important to learn how to control stress so that you recognize it and take action to suppress it before it distracts you from your goals.
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