Tag Archives: goals

Ready for New Year’s Resolutions? How to Accomplish Everything on Your List This Year

“The longest journey starts with a single step.” - Lao Tzu
                          
Gearing up for the new year

It’s that time of year again: new calendars, party plans, and “Auld Lang Syne.”

Counting down to the new year just isn’t complete without also making at least one resolution. Chances are there are a few issues you’d like to work on in 2011, broad personal or professional objectives that might top your official resolution list this year.

Turning those broad items into attainable goals is, of course, the real challenge.

Planning for success: how to set short-term goals with long-term objectives
Big picture vs. small steps

Setting a goal often starts with an idea of the “big picture,” the end result you want to achieve. A sense of accomplishment, sometimes at a key moment, usually lets you know you’ve met the objective. Students, for example, daydream about graduation, while job seekers likely imagine signing on the dotted line to accept their ideal position. That big promotion and what it might mean for your career might also be easy to envision.

While the mental image of achieving what you set out to accomplish might seem clear, exactly how to arrive at that specific end result can be less obvious.   

Reaching goals is a process that requires time, self-evaluation, and sustained effort. Taking the right approach and maintaining motivation along the way can be major challenges. Knowing how to stay on track can help make any goal a reality.

Tips for managing your goals

Define them: Write down exactly what you want to do and what success looks like to you. SMART goals are specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and timely. Don’t forget to identify how you’ll define goal completion. Be realistic about what’s possible and when. Learn more about SMART goals.

Identify first steps:  Outline a series of short-term goals that lead to long-term objectives. Assess what you need to do and be specific about details. For example, if you want to enhance your communication skills, penciling in “Communicate better at work” probably isn’t specific enough. Instead, try researching local public speaking clubs, finding university classes at a nearby campus, or scheduling a first presentation so that a target date is established from the beginning.

Find support: Let others know what you’re working to achieve. Talk regularly with people who can encourage you and will keep you accountable. If you can find another person with the same goal, try to tackle it together. Friends, family, or a support group can help keep you motivated.

Try small but significant changes: A small change can make a big difference. Trade one behavior for another that aligns with the goal, rather than trying to eliminate a big issue all at once. Know that what you’re doing is going to take time. Develop your skills and take gradual steps.

Revamp goals as needed: Take a step back and look at the progress you’re making. By assessing your progress, you can decide if you need to restructure your goals to better accomplish them.

Reward mini-milestones: Celebrate reaching short-term goals in a meaningful way. Make the reward something you can look forward to. Changing your habits is often the real key to achieving your goals, so choose positive incentives that reinforce what you’ve already done.

Give yourself a break: Recognize that the goal process may not always go as planned and give yourself permission to try something else. Keep an open mind and look into different options if your original plan doesn’t work in the way you thought it would.

New year, new you

Get your new year off to a great start by making your resolution list today. Take the time to determine what steps will help get 2011 off to a running start by following the tips above. Do you have others to share? Post in the comments section.

A Simple Goal-Setting Guide

Creating goals is a great way to keep yourself motivated, focused, and progressing throughout the year. As we approach the close of the year, goal-setting is a hot topic, especially in business. But you can set goals for yourself any time of year, for any reason. To get started, determine the areas you want to set goals in.

1) Select Goal Types.

Personal – As the most common type of goals, these  may focus on personal enrichment activities, health and fitness objectives, hobbies, spiritual enrichment, etc. Though the new year is a popular time to set these goals, creating short-to-mid-term , measurable personal goals may be more realistic and help you get the results you want. 

Job Search – Looking for a job? The job search can be a long and daunting process, so create weekly and monthly goals to keep yourself on track.

Work – Want to really enjoy your work? Create goals for yourself so you can enjoy the feeling of continual success as you accomplish your daily tasks.

Career – Want to move up in your career or even switch fields? Career goals can be mid-to long- term and help you advance in your profession.

Networking – Whether in social media or in person, creating networking goals can help you expand your network and deepening relationships with important contacts.

Education – Want to pursue a degree, vocational training, or apprenticeship? Educational goals are critical because they can help you make important decisions on coursework, programs, conferences and even career choices.

2) Create SMART Goals.

Once you’ve selected the areas you want to create goals for, use the SMART goals formula to set goals that will help you progress. This formula is a time-tested way to create goals that are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-based.

Specific – Make sure your goals are clear and well-defined. For example, instead of creating a health goal such as “work out more,” create a goal: “to exercise twice a week.” 

Measurable – How will you know if you’re accomplishing your goals? Make them measurable from the get-go! The goal “ to exercise twice a week” is something you can measure, as long as you can count to two! Let’s try a more complex goal, like an educational process. Instead of “to obtain a college diploma,” which is very vague, “complete 20 hours of coursework towards my bachelor’s degree this year,  is something you can check to ensure progress as time goes by.

Achievable – You don’t want to set your goals so high you can’t reach them. On the other hand, you don’t want to set them so low they don’t mean much. So, make sure you are taking into account personal, financial, and other factors. Make your goals something you can accomplish through diligent effort.

Relevant – This may seem like an odd component of a good goal, but especially when it comes to your work life, it’s important to have relevant goals. For example, if you want to become a manager, setting a goal to get a degree in philosophy might not be the best idea. So, make sure your goals are something relevant to you.

Time-based – Goals that have no deadline are little more than talk. That’s because without deadlines, you’ll find yourself procrastinating on your progress. Timelines are one of the most important parts of goal-setting, but it’s the thing most people leave out of the process. So, give your goals deadlines and stick to them!

3) Commit and Follow Through.

The final step in the goal-setting process is to write your goals down, share them with someone who can hold you accountable, and measure your progress. Also share your goal deadlines with a friend, colleague, family-member, or other trusted person. Have them follow up with you on your timeline to help keep you on track!

Are you setting goals for this month? Are you already planning goals for next year? Share your thoughts on goals in the comments section, and feel free to share a goal with us there, too!

Your Life: Take Control (of What You Can)

Balancing the deadlines, workloads, and relationships of life can be difficult enough when the rubber hits the road. Add in worries and fears – about job security or the nation’s economy – and it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. While many of the concerns you face on a daily basis are beyond your control, managing the things you can control will help you feel secure, focused, and ready to face life’s challenges – both big and small.

If you feel like your life is a circus and you’re worried that something’s going to give in your balancing act, concentrate on controlling what you can and choose to worry less about what you can’t. Here are five things you can take control of today to help ease your stress.

Priorities. Create task lists – one for home and one for work. Write down the things you need to accomplish and prioritize each list. Make sure to check off your tasks as you complete them, and you’ll soon realize how much you have actually accomplished. 

Clutter. Organize and clean your workspace and home environment to create an atmosphere that fosters clear thinking. When your space is free of clutter, you’ll be able to focus on the tasks at hand or just unwind from the stresses you face.

Personal Health. Make healthy lifestyle choices by exercising, eating well, and getting enough sleep. The benefits of managing your health are endless and will help give you the energy, focus, and overall wellness you need to keep pace with the demands of the day.

Goals. Make a list of goals you want to accomplish – from minor to lofty – and write them down by order of importance. Break each goal into steps, and mark off accomplishments as you complete them. This will help you gain the momentum you need to achieve your ambitions.

Attitude. Make the decision to have an optimistic outlook and a positive attitude no matter what your circumstances, and you won’t be defeated by challenges that arise. Instead, you’ll be more productive, focused, and ready to take on those challenges.  

Be the ring leader of your circus. Take control of the things you can and you’ll be in the perfect position to enjoy the show.