How to set and accomplish your goals!
Everyone wants to get their goals accomplished, right? You set your goals with the intention of successfully being able to check them off your list and say "I did it!" Yet it is not as easy as it sounds to set goals AND accomplish those goals. This week's 3 minute video is my real world, practical advice about how to set and accomplish your goals. While there are several great business acronyms for setting goals it has been my experience in the corporate world and the entrepreneurial world (and in my personal life) these following perimeters are the most realistic.
Start your new year with a Master Plan.Buy a notebook (please). Write down your goals and To Do lists in the notebook. There is something very powerful about physically writing your own goals down and looking at them every day in black and white. If your Goals and To Do lists are on your phone or in your computer, you will not be looking at them regularly. Our lives are so busy and full, it is very easy to get distracted and interrupted and pulled off of our game plan unintentionally. It's easier to stay focused on our priorities if we set them ourselves and make a tangible To Do list that aligns with those priorities.
How to set achievable goals:
Set only 3 goals. You cannot focus on more than 3 goals because you will have to compromise your priorities with your very limited time, energy and money. Write these 3 goals down where you and your team can see them every day. This is very important. It keeps your goals front of mind and keeps you and your team focused on your priorities as your life and job get distracting.
Make them realistic. Make sure you can accomplish each goal in the timeframe you have set. It's great to have stretch goals- goals that are going to challenge you- yet they cannot be so far fetched or lofty that you become overwhelmed or unable to accomplish them. When you are unable to reach a goal you can feel defeated or unsuccessful, so be sure it's attainable.
Make them time sensitive and time specific. I suggest you set goals that are for 30,60 and 90 days out. You can see the finish line when it's a shorter time frame and you have more opportunities for success and gaining momentum. Ideally, you set one big picture goal for your year and set realistic shorter term goals that move you toward that main objective. It becomes much easier to stay focused on your priorities and accomplish what you set out to do if the finish line is visible. One year away can feel like a very long time to get a result.
Make them measurable. Can you measure your goal? If you cannot measure it -increased sales, profit dollars, new clients, new products, pounds lost, miles ran- you cannot determine if you have successfully reached it. Be specific about how you will measure your achievements in your goal setting process.
How to accomplish your goal:
Proactively align your Daily, Weekly & Monthly To Do lists with your Goals so your everyday actions are focused on accomplishing your goals.
Set up a Master To Do list. For your 30, 60, 90 day Goals- Make 10 Action Items that must be done to get to that goal, then work backwards by breaking each of those 10 Action Items into Weekly and Daily To Do lists. Think of it like planning for a Wedding or Trade Show- there are a million tasks that must be done to have a successful large scale event. There are tasks you must do immediately or the event will not happen, tasks that must be done sequentially for the event, and tasks that can only be done after everything else has been completed.
Break it down into manageable tasks. Take your Master To Do list and break it down further into weekly actionable, measurable tasks that move you toward your bigger 30,60,90 day goals. This helps you experience success more frequently, thus it is easier to stay motivated to get your tasks accomplished. Break the 30 day Goals into Weekly To Do lists consisting of 10 tasks that align with each goal. It would be overwhelming and unclear to simply write down "Plan the September Tradeshow". There are many tasks that must be completed for an event 6 months away to be a successful.
Make a daily To Do list consisting of only 10 To Do items. I know I said this earlier, yet it is the easiest task not to do. We assume we know what we need to accomplish today at work so we don't needto write it down, right? Wrong. Our days are filled with emails, distractions and interruptions that easily make every day a reactive day instead of a proactive day.
Work-life gets distracting and certainly there will be interruptions and changes that tempt to pull your attention elsewhere. It is much easier to remain motivated and focused on the goal you set out to accomplish when you have created a realistic Master Plan, with a Master To Do list, and you break it down into weekly, then daily tasks that move you towards that goal.
When you are proactive about how you spend your time, energy and money, you feel motivated and successful because your actions align with your priorities.