We all have goals. When we reach them, we feel a sense of accomplishment and self-satisfaction. It truly is a great and powerful feeling. Unfortunately, the opposite is also true. When we don’t reach our goals, we are often filled with disappointment and discouragement. Sometimes when we look back, we see that we were doomed to fail from the start.
The truth is, a major factor in reaching our goals, is how we set them, and how we approach them on a daily basis. Here are five ways to reach your goal with ease.
1.Make them SMART
A SMART goal is not referring to intelligence, but rather how detailed we make them. It is important to set your goal with the most amount of detail possible by having our goals Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timely (S-M-A-R-T). If we don’t make our goals SMART, we are setting ourselves up for failure. Saying you plan to go to the gym is not a specific goal. Saying you are going to go to the gym 7 times a week may be specific but is it attainable? Planning to lose 50lbs in three months’ addresses time but chances are it’s not realistic.
It is important to set ourselves up for success and the first step in doing that is by making sure we have clear goals that we can track and achieve.
2.Reward Yourself
Why do people celebrate achievements? Because it feels great! It gives us something to look forward to and it acknowledges our growth. So many goals are being missed, it is important to make a big deal out of the goals reached. It will not only raise our spirits but will also encourage us as we strive for our next goal.
The reward doesn’t need to be big either. Maybe it is a day in the mountains or your favorite meal. Maybe the reward is just a night of Netflix and popcorn. No matter how small your reward is, we must include it.
3. Find an Accountability partner
Once we say our goal out loud it becomes real. That’s why many of us choose to keep out goal a secret. Fight the urge! Having an accountability partner can be a great help. If you don’t want to tell everyone that’s fine, but choose at least one person. That person will become your greatest cheerleader. You’ll have someone to be there when you reward yourself, and you’ll have someone the support you when you feel like giving up. If your goal matches your partner’s that is even better. You are much less likely to give up if you are working towards a goal with someone.
4. Break down your goals
Sometimes goals are big. That’s okay, as long as you break it into small chunks to better fit your life. Each chunk can be as small as you want it. In fact, the smaller the better. Sit down with a calendar and set small checkpoints. Make sure to leave free days to catch up in case you miss a checkpoint. The smaller we make the building blocks, the less stressful they will be to reach and the less discouraging they will be if we fall behind. Because life constantly throws us curve balls, don’t hesitate to adjust the calendar as you go (remember to keep it realistic).
5. Display your goals
This one may be embarrassing but just ignore that feeling. It helps with goals if you put them up everywhere. Place little post-it notes everywhere you’ll be looking: on your fridge, in your car, on your bathroom mirror, on the cover of books, etc. It often helps if you place a note on the TV screen as a constant reminder to finish your task before you sit and relax.
It may seem like a lot of work to set a goal but the easier you make it on yourself, the more chance you have of completing it and with each goal checked off, you come one step closer to living your best life.
Source: Lets move vancouver