A life without goals is both aimless and remarkably dull. That is why it is first important to set goals and benchmarks for yourself, but equally important to write them down and have them visible to you every single day. I'm sure everyone has goals, whether they are high quality, focused, effective goals is the question. Today's blog is going to consist of first writing down a high quality goal, considering plans that will progress you towards achieving that goal, and building upon previously completed goals.
First, high quality goals are very important. "Lose 10 pounds" is a goal, no doubt, but it has holes and holes equate to failure in my experience. "I want to lose 10 pounds in the month of September by walking 30 minutes every day" is a high quality goal. What is the difference? Well, it has a time frame right. You want to achieve this goal in the month of September and success is only true if you lost 10 pounds by October 1, this takes the open ended portion out. Now you can succeed but you can also fail and failure is not an option. What else is different? You have a plan, walk 30 minutes every day. Even though just walking 30 minutes might not help you achieve your goal, it is a step in the right direction. The last difference I was to touch on is the sense of self and the accountability of starting the goal with "I." I find that when I real hone in my goals to my conscience like that I am more driven to complete them.
The next step, creating a plan. We will use the goal from above. Walk 30 minutes every day, that is a great plan. This might not get you to success though, so consider back up plans and possibly additional steps to guarantee success. I am going to walk 30 minutes every day and I am going to go on a 2,100 calorie diet. This is an excellent plan to lose weight, exercise everyday and go on a diet that is tracked and calculated. You are well on your way to checking this goal as a victory.
That is not all though because goals are unlimited whether you fail or succeed. Let's say you succeed, you have lost 10 pounds in September. Well what now? With no further goal the 10 pounds is going to come right back and bam you lost a month of dedicated work. So, you write a new, high quality goal for October. Maybe it is one that builds on your weight loss journey, or maintain the lost weight, or gain muscle... anything, just not nothing. Devil's advocate now, you failed the goal. Great! Failure is the best way to learn and failure is only acceptable if it is temporary. Now you have motivation to finish the goal in October, or maybe even set higher standards. Just never, ever, fail at anything in life and give up because quitting is never an option.
So, you've learned how to write high quality goals as well as making sure you continue to build on your goals. Write down five that you want to complete by the end of 2023. Make sure you have monthly goals written also, ones that are stepping stones to your ultimate goal. Take an extra step and make daily goals that will help you complete the monthly goals, you will find that success is much easier the further you break down the goals because it makes the goal more manageable day by day. I have my goals for 2023 written in multiple places, a chalk board above my bed, a post it next to my computer, and it is my lock screen for my phone so I have constant reminders of what I need to achieve in 2023. Get out there and change your life.
SK