Setting a goal can sometimes seem like a futuristic exercise if you don’t have the resources or drive to achieve it. Indeed, only a fraction of people who set goals achieve them, and this disparity may be discouraging. If you aim to break this pattern and succeed in setting goals and achieving them, there are a few tips for goal setting that you should adopt into your life. Consider the following eight ways that you can turn objectives into reality.
1. Create SMART Goals
The first step to achieving a goal is choosing an achievable one. If you habitually aim for unrealistic or unhealthy accomplishments, you set yourself up for disappointment. Conversely, if you assess your resources and set a SMART goal, you are far more likely to achieve it. Consider the criteria of the SMART acronym — specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and timely — and ensure that each of these descriptions applies to the goals you’ve decided to set.
2. Be Specific About Your Goals
The first letter in the SMART acronym is an important one — specificity. Unclear goals will be unmet goals. When describing your objective, you need to be detailed about what you want to achieve — and, more importantly, why you want to achieve it. Rather than saying, “I want to be happier,” for example, you might say, “I want to experience more joy in everyday experiences.” This statement identifies what you hope to do and illustrates why you want to do it.
3. Write Them Down
Writing is one of the most essential goal-setting tips for employees. Research shows that writing down a goal will increase the likelihood of accomplishing it. Writing activates a part of your brain that commits information to memory. It also allows you to verbalize your goals and develop a specific focus. All of these factors will contribute to a greater sense of motivation, which will drive you to accomplish the goals you’ve established for yourself.
4. Create Deadlines
The T in the SMART acronym is often overlooked, but it is one of the most essential elements of the system. Indeed, a goal is far more likely to be met if it is given a timeline. If you would like to lose 15 pounds, this goal is essentially meaningless without a deadline. You will only meet your goal if you identify the time you wish to complete it. Of course, this deadline may be flexible, but simply setting a deadline will help you work towards the goal’s completion.
5. Prioritize Goals
Yet another critical component of achieving your goals is your willingness to commit to them. If you’ve set the goal mentioned above of losing 15 pounds, for example, you won’t accomplish it until you are willing to prioritize it. Otherwise, a love of pizza and a hatred of exercise can easily make achievement impossible. You must learn how to put your goals before your immediate impulses if you wish to achieve them.
6. Create a Plan of Action
Once you’ve decided to prioritize your goals, you can develop a plan of action that will help you do so. For example, if you want to receive a promotion at work, you can work toward this goal with a three-step plan. For your first step, you should identify the criteria for the promotion by talking with your boss. Next, you can excel at work to demonstrate your competence. Lastly, you can apply for the promotion when it becomes available.
7. Tell Others About Goals
Accountability is an integral part of any transformative process. Nobody can act in isolation, and we are all interconnected with our network of friends and family. You can leverage these relationships by talking to your loved ones about your goals. As you speak to them, tell them what you are hoping to accomplish, why it is essential to you, and your plan of action for the future. When you tell others about your goals, you’re creating a level of accountability that will incentivize accomplishment.
8. Hold Yourself Accountable & Achieve Goals
In addition to accountability from outside sources, you’ll need to find accountability from within. You are ultimately the only person who can accomplish your goal, and you need to recognize the responsibility that comes with this power. When it seems challenging to continue working toward your goals, focus on the future and envision yourself having completed it. Visualizing the future is an effective way to motivate yourself; you can maintain accountability by encouraging yourself. See how the right virtual work platform can help you accomplish your professional goals.