Achieving Your Goals

Setting goals is pointless unless you make every effort to actually achieve your goals. Learn how to increase your odds of success at achieving your goals.

By now, you should be absolutely convinced of the importance of having goals and its direct relationship to success.  You should have also defined and set at least three goals using some or all of the steps in the goal setting strategy in the previous article.  Now it is time to create your plan of action and see your goals through.

Create your plan of action.  A plan of action in this sense is essentially a "to do" list.  However, the plan of action includes a list of monthly, weekly and most important, daily actions that will bring you closer to your goal.  The concept of taking small, daily actions toward the achievement of your goals is, to me, the most important factor in achieving goals.  Do your best to find some action that you can do on a daily basis that will bring you closer to your goal.  Add, "review goal" or "reevaluate actions based on progress" to your daily, weekly, or monthly action here.

The second part of the plan of action, or to do list, is the list of non-recurring actions.  Here you list the action, the date it needs to be done on or by, and the approximate time it will take.  You can even implement your plan of action in your existing to do list if you already have one.

Here is an example of our plan of action for weighing a lean, mean 170 pounds:

DAILY: cardio exercise for one hour, eat a light lunch
WEEKLY: weigh myself and take measurements
MONTHLY: reevaluate actions based on progress

Action: lift weights at gym with trainer
Date: Sept 1,3,5,8,10,12,15,17,19,22,24,26
Time: about 1 hour per session

Follow your action plan like you would follow a written prescription from your doctor (assuming you listen to your doctor).  An action plan is worthless unless you honestly plan to follow it.

Without question, you will meet adversity.  For some reason, at some time, you will find yourself not as committed to reaching your goals as you were when you first wrote them down.  Do not despair, for this is all part of the process.  Here are some suggestions to help you stay committed to your goals and follow them through.

• Change what isn't working.  Be flexible.  If you are not making progress on your goal, or you are not satisfied with the level of progress you are making, change the action steps you are taking to reach your goal.  Don't confuse activity with accomplishment.  Be sure to reflect on the progress you have made, not on the time or effort you have put into the goal.
• Know when to share your goals with others.  Here is a simple rule for when to share your goals with others:  share your goal only with those who you feel will be supportive of your goals; otherwise, keep your goals to yourself. 
• Don't procrastinate.  Your goals have maturity dates and dates associated with action steps for a reason.  Practice self-discipline. If you don't have any self-discipline, make getting some your #1 goal.
• Keep motivated.  If you are taking this course and have made it this far, this should not be an issue for you.  Motivation comes from within so whip some up when you need it.
• Believe in yourself.  Millions of people reach their goals every day.  Why can't you be one of them?
• Reward yourself.  Whenever you reach a goal, celebrate.  Treat yourself to something special, give yourself a pat on the back, post it on our forum and let other members know about it, eat a Scooby snack--whatever it takes.  Show appreciation for yourself and your commitment.

Goal setting is not easy and achieving your goals is even more challenging.  It has been said that you must pay the price for achieving your goals, but the truth is, you enjoy the benefits. You pay the price for not setting goals at all. Set goals in your personal and professional life that will provide your life with purpose and direction. The discipline you learn and character you build from setting and achieving goals is more valuable than the achievement of the goal itself, so enjoy the process and have fun!

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