Goal-Setting 101

So, how did you like last week’s post on getting your mind right by creating your own healthy thoughts program? I hope you were able to take some time to create your positive proclamations and find some mind set tools that work for you. Remember you can always revisit these and make adjustments. Don’t worry if you are still having doubts every day and still having negative thoughts. Remember this is a process. It took a long time to get all those negative thoughts into your brain and it will take a while to make your healthy thoughts program second nature.

As you continue down this path to being more positive it is a good time to talk about basic goal-setting. This discussion is meant to deal with your most basic everyday goals. This is not the same as setting big outside the box goals that are meant to change the world. But more on those later.

Here are some fun facts about the kinds of goals people set and what happens to them. Did you know that?

• 92% of New Year’s resolutions fail by January 15^th.
• People with written goals are 50% more likely to achieve their goals if they are written down and in their own handwriting.
• Sharing your goals with a close friend or coach will help you stay focused and on track. It makes you accountable.
• 3 out 10 people who write their goals down or create a vision board are more likely to achieve them.

About 12 years ago I sat down with a friend and created a vision board. I had no idea of what I was doing or what I even wanted to accomplish. I started putting all types of pictures of my board. Writing down all sorts of goals, most way out of my league. About a year later I found my board buried under a bunch of stuff in my office, and I looked at my board and none of the things I put on there came true. I wondered why and started researching goal setting and vision boards. In my research, I found out that you need to be very careful of the things you put on your vision board and the things you write down as far as goals are concerned. I found this amazing acronym for effective goal setting that was introduced to the world in an article in the November 1981 Management Review by George Doran, Arthur Miller, and James Cunningham.

The original acronym S.M.A.R.T. said goals should specific, measurable, assignable, realistic, and time-based. Over time the acronym has evolved into…

• Specific, simple, sensible and significant
  •    Be as specific as possible when writing down a goal.
  •    Keep them simple and sensible so that they are easy to understand.
  •    Make them worth achieving.
• Measurable, meaningful and motivating
  •    Make sure you have a way to know if you met them or not.
  •    Again, make them worth achieving so you feel compelled to do so.
• Achievable, agreed and attainable
  •    Make sure they are something you can do.
  •    Make them action-oriented
• Relevant, reasonable, realistic, resourced and result-based
  •    Make sure your goals matter to you.
  •    Make sure they align with your other goals.
• Timely, time-sensitive, time-limited and time-based
  •    Put a specific date on the goal.

So now that you know what S.M.A.R.T. stands for let’s put it to use. Grab your favorite journal or notebook or sit down at your computer. But find your happy place, a place where you feel comfortable, and start writing. The act of writing down a goal down is a very powerful motivator.

Pick a few areas of your life that are most important to you and how would you like to see these things change.

• What is it you want to do in your business?
• What is it you want to do spiritually?
• What is it you want to do regarding your family?
• What is it you want to do regarding self-care?

These are just a few areas. What are the ones that are important to you? How can you make big yet attainable changes in your life? Set yourself up for success. Don’t forget about your positive proclamations many of your goals can and should tie directly to those.

Now, remember those big outside the box goals I mentioned earlier? Here are some tips for those times when you need to throw caution to the wind and turn this completely on its side and think really big. Step up your S.M.A.R.T. goals and make sure they are:

• Stretching
  •    These goals push you beyond your limits.
• Motivating
  •    These goals make you excited to get started every day, because they are life-changing.
• Ambitious
  •    This is where you are reaching for the stars.
• Robust
  •    These goals have some real depth to them; they are far-reaching.
• Trackable
  •    If you are going to set big goals, you need to be able to track them.

So, are you READY? Whether you are setting basic goals or crazy outside the box goals I would love to hear about them. Hop on over to my Facebook page or comment below and let me hear what you have planned. Also grab a friend, a good positive one that will keep you accountable, and share your goals. Ask them to keep you accountable for getting them done and do the same for them.