Starting out a new year, most individuals are primed to turn their lives around; to do something positive and create a better life.
One of the most important aspects to achieving the life you want is working with goals. Goals help you figure out what you really want to accomplish. They create a framework from which to work from and also give you a roadmap for what you need to do and what you have already accomplished.
Goals can be short-term or long-term. A short-term goal can be accomplished in a manner of days or weeks, while a long-term goal could take as long as 6 months to a year to come to fruition.
In order for a goal to work, it must be challenging but realistic. If goals are too hard, you may perceive a high risk of failure and frustration. Further, goals must be specific and incorporate a series of short-term goals that when put together, make a larger, long-term goal. If the goals you have are not your own, but are imposed by parents, coaches, or even your peers, you are likely not to accept them and not find much meaning to them.
Other problems people have in making goals include:
1. Readjusting goals. Sometimes you have a certain goal in mind, but perhaps you can’t do everything necessary to make that goal a reality. If you don’t reevaluate the goal and make some changes, you are likely to feel frustrated or anxious and abandon that goal. Make sure you have a Plan A, B, and C.
2. Failing to set specific goals. Just making a goal to “be the best” at something is way too vague. How are you going to measure that goal? When will you consider being your “best?” Instead, it is better to have a series of small goals that allow you to measure your progress on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis.
3. Setting too many goals. Having too many goals spreads your resources too thin. Your mind will not be able to focus on several things at once and you may end up doing half as well on several things as you could have mastered if you’d chosen fewer goals.
To make your goals more effective, try these suggestions:
1. Put your goals in writing.
2. Make your goals challenging, but attainable.
3. When you have more than one goal, be sure that they are somehow connected.
4. Give yourself a specific time frame in which your goal will be met.
5. Determine exactly what you want. This isn’t the time to be vague
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