“Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you’ll land among the stars.”
- Les Brown
Instead of having a mental ‘to do’ list, a handful of good intentions or some vague desire to make changes, connect your plans for self improvement by focusing on specific goals. Goal setting helps you make better decisions, ensures you achieve your short- and long-term objectives, and allows you to measure your accomplishments.
But goal achievement, especially when it comes to self improvement, can be a mystery. Most of us have no trouble with the first step — setting a goal is the easy part — it’s those other steps that can be a puzzle.
But you CAN turn achieving your goals into a science with the right strategies. Here are a few of my favorites:
1. DO be specific. DON’T deal in absolutes.
Avoid the words ‘some’ and ‘more’, as in “I will get SOME exercise” or “I will eat MORE veggies and fruits.” It leaves too much wiggle-out room. Deal in measurable things that you have control over. And never say ‘never’ or ‘always.’ All or nothing is a common attitude that leads people back to bad habits.
2. DO create a plan. DON’T wait for “someday” to roll around.
Setting the goal is just the first step. Know where you’re going, what resources you’ll need, who can help and — above all — what Plan B is when life throws a monkey wrench into Plan A.
3. DO write it down. DON’T forget to give yourself a deadline.
Deadlines turn wishes into goals, they generate the motivation necessary for you to get yourself to take action. The act of writing down your goal is powerful enough to keep you committed and focused. Better yet, find a visual that represents your goal or how your life will be different. Seeing it makes it seem more possible.
4. DO start small. DON’T focus on too many things at once.
Start very small, get the habit of starting handled, then build. Use a small goal that you know you can do each day for the next two weeks, like getting up without the snooze or drinking eight cups of water. Build that first habit to boost your confidence and pick up speed.
5. DO leave room for failure. DON’T expect perfection.
Persistence is key. Accept the fact that you might not make it on the first try. In a recent study, only 40 percent of people who successfully followed New Year’s resolutions did it on the first try; 17 percent of resolution achievers took six or more tries before they got it right — but they did get it right.
6. DO track your progress. DON’T fool yourself into failure.
Tracking provides valuable feedback and indications of areas that may need to be addressed or adjusted. Memory can be pretty selective. It conveniently forgets that extra brownie while remembering activity that never happened. The only way to know for sure is to track goals regularly with a checklist or journal.
7. DO reward your success. DON’T beat yourself up over failure.
This is the step that trips up most individuals. Negative reinforcement is all around us, telling us every day what we’re doing wrong. This is not the approach to take to succeed with your goals. Why not focus on what you’re doing right instead? If you take a step back, learn from it and take two steps forward.
8. DO find a support system. DON’T try to do it alone.
Whether the goals you want to achieve are personal goals, business goals, or a combination of both, a goal buddy can be your key to goal setting success. People that can help are all around you — on the forums, at work, even in your own family. Just add one person to your support group, and you double your motivation, double your energy, double your commitment — and double your FUN.
Measure your progress on a regular basis. Do a review of where you are and how far you’ve come every three months. Think of it as doing a quarterly performance review. One of the reasons resolutions and plans crumble in the face of day-to-day responsibilities is a lack of focus. Tie everything you do into your overall goal and you can achieve amazing results.
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Productivity Tip #04: Take A Break And Recharge - Practical advice on personal development, productivity and GTD
November 23, 2007
Great post. All good techniques for effective goal setting and striving. I also really like Brian Tracy’s concise instruction on goal setting:
“Make every goal clear, specific, measurable, and time bounded. “
November 24, 2007
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November 24, 2007
Do start small. I wish that I would have learned this lesson many years ago. I always get all these great ideas and never follow through. I’ve been falling back into old habits and trying to climb the mountain by leaps and bounds instead of one step at a time.
Thanks,
Karl
November 24, 2007
[...] Eight Do’s and Don’ts of Effective Goal Setting from Personal Development with Ririan Project by Ririan (tags: productivity goals) [...]
November 25, 2007
Great article.
Do actually decide to take action and make some goals! Don’t procrastinate.
Do use goals no matter what your background. Don’t think goals are only for business or sales-minded people.
Do stretch youself. Don’t make them too easy to accomplish.
Do have goals across your main areas of life (maybe, Career, Finance, Personal Growth, Health, Family, Relationships, Social Life, Home).
Andrew
November 25, 2007
[...] 8 Do’s and Don’ts of Effective Goal Setting, I really like the quote at the beginning of the article. [...]
November 26, 2007
Great Post. I really would urge everyone to focus their attention on setting the support system. A quick way to do this is to find friends with the same goal and focus on spending more time with them. Another way is to find mentors who have already accomplished this goal and to learn from them. Of course to build relationships with others make sure you are offering them value, whether it’s a friend or a mentor. For example ask the question, how else can you help your friend out? If it’s a mentor, what do they need help with? I’m sure you can find something especially if your technologically savvy. This ensures that the relationship is a win-win where both parties are providing value to each other.
Andrew
PersonalHack.com – Personal Development Productivity Blog
November 27, 2007
[...] 12. Ririan Project – Eight Do’s and Don’ts of Effective Goal Setting [...]
November 27, 2007
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November 29, 2007
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December 17, 2007
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December 18, 2007
I didn’t realize it until now, but number 1 is a big problem for me. Thanks for the wakeup call!
January 1, 2008
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