Journaling,  LIFESTYLE,  Personal Development

Using Goal Setting for a Better 2019

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We have been looking at ways to set yourself up to have a better 2019.

We spent some time looking at how to evaluate and move forward with your business — whatever it may be. Now we are looking at how to improve you like recommitting to your wellbeing or considering reinvention. Today we will touch on goal setting.

If you have been looking for ways to change your life, setting better goals might be just what you need. This can be done in a variety of ways, including with a journal or a planner you use daily. Goals are not just about trying to accomplish big things either – there are so many smaller, realistic goals that make a drastic difference in your life, your mental health, and your happiness.

How do your goals make a difference?

You Get a Better Sense of Your Life’s Direction

Have you been feeling like you’re not quite sure where your life is headed, who you are, or what you are supposed to be doing? This is very common among adults of all ages and in all walks of life. There may be many moments in your life when you feel a little stuck or unsure. Using a daily planner or journal can help tremendously when you are setting goals.

Even if you haven’t gotten any clarity yet, you can start small with your goals and tasks to complete them. As you do this more often, you start to see what areas become a priority and which ones don’t. You might find out more about yourself based on the types of goals you set or the tasks you enjoy or don’t enjoy doing.

There can be a lot to learn about yourself and your life just by setting some goals.

You Feel More Successful When You Are Productive

As you begin making lists of actions and tasks that need to be completed to achieve your goals, you’ll start becoming more productive and focused. This happens naturally as it’s much easier to get things done with a list in front of you. Every time you cross something off your task list, you feel that sense of accomplishment, which motivates you to continue. This –in turn– creates more fulfillment and happiness in your life because of how accomplished and proud you feel.

It Helps to Prioritize Things in Your Life

Setting goals also may have other benefits, including helping you to figure out what your biggest priority is. As you start writing down goals, you’ll quickly put each goal into a list in your head. Some things might be short-term and things you can work on now, while others are long-term goals that require more work and patience.

There’ll also be some goals that you always thought were important to you, but suddenly just don’t feel like a priority. That’s okay! Don’t let this stress you out. As you grow and change, your ambitions will as well.

You Can Use SMART and SHARP Goals

When you are ready to set your goals and task lists, remember two fundamental goal-setting methods: SMART and SHARP. These actually work together very well for personal and professional goals. I have written about SMART goals in the past but I haven’t touched on SHARP goals.

SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Timely. Every goal should fit into all of these categories, where it is a specific and attainable goal that is realistic, one that shows you how long it should take, is relevant to your life and what you want to achieve, and one with results that are measurable.

Also, make sure your goals are SHARP, which stands for Simplified, How, Action, Review, and Progress. Keep the goals and tasks simple and easy to accomplish, know what is required (how) to achieve the goal, and what actions you will take. You want to be able to review your progress, as well as see the final outcome.

You Get More Motivation

Setting goals will also change your life by giving you the motivation to succeed. It’s really easy to get comfortable in your life and work, where it’s difficult to take that next step. Setting goals will help give you a place to start, and the feeling of accomplishment as you make progress help give you that push – that motivation you need to get to the next level in your life.

3 Tips for Setting Goals

We just discussed how goals can make a difference in your life. Here are 3 tips for setting the most appropriate goals for you this year.

  • Create different types of goals

Rather than thinking about the ultimate goal or the one thing in life that you really want, such as buying a mansion or owning a yacht, you should make your list a series of both short-term and long-term goals.

While you might want a certain salary by age 40, you should also create smaller goals for the meantime. This also means that rather than having one huge mountain to climb and therefore only one success to celebrate, you can achieve many different things, building your confidence, and keeping you enthusiastic along the way.

  • Get disciplined with yourself

Put something in your calendar or discipline yourself to set new goals at the start of every month (or every year). You could create individual goals for each month, as well as one for six months, and then another for the end of the year.

At the start of each month, take five minutes to review your goals, see how far you’ve progressed, and add any new goals as needed.

  • Find a friend

Setting goals with friends may often be more fun than doing it alone. You can not only discuss your own personal goals with each other but can also give each other ideas for new goals. As a group, you all can hold each other accountable (accountability partners) and make the whole experience more fun. In fact, you might even want to select goals that you can work on together.

While it often works best in small groups, there’s nothing wrong with a larger group working together on a project.

If you use some of these tips, it could just make goal setting easier and more fun!

For a more in-depth look at achieving your goals, here is a book called Crush Your Goals from my Shop at Life: The Reboot.

Loving Life–The Reboot!

Dominique

My Amazon Author Page

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Shop at Life: The Reboot

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