People that write down their goals are 99% more likely to achieve them than those that don’t. Here’s the process I go through every few months when I do my goal setting. In the last 6 months I’ve achieved almost every goal I’ve set with this process.
1. Write down your BIG GOAL – If you could achieve one thing in the next 6 months, what would that be? The more specific you can be about your goal the easier it will be to achieve. The problem most people have is they don’t know what they want.
If you left your Christmas presents up to your family to choose you probably wound up with jocks and socks, but if you told them exactly what you wanted there’s a good chance you got it. It’s no different with goal setting. Be clear and specific. I write my big goal on a whiteboard and then map out the next steps below it.
2. Write down WHY you want to achieve it – Your reason why behind your goals is like the fuel that powers a jet plane. The more fire it creates the faster it will go. If your reason why burns inside every time you think of it, that’s a strong catalyst for success.
I use reasons that motivate me towards my goal (Buy place on the beach, more toys to play with, etc) and away from what I don’t want (Never have boss again, Never have lack of sleep because of too much work, etc).
3. Write down HOW you’re going to do it – If you’re already on your way to reaching your goals you will know exactly what you need to do to get there. If you’re unsure, find someone who is successful in the field and get mentoring from them. How do you get mentoring form them? Ask. It’s that simple. You’d be surprised how many successful enjoy being asked for advice.
Once you know how your going to reach your goals, work your way backwards from achieving the goal to where you are now. I’ve blurred out some of my ‘how
My latest whiteboard goal planning session (minus some blurred out legs of my business for obvious reasons)
4. Set a DEADLINE – Make it realistic but don’t limit yourself. You can achieve a lot more in 6 months than you think. Don’t make it some goal you’d like to reach in 10 years. One year is my maximum. Anymore than that and it’s too easy to lose focus.
5. Take the FIRST STEP – You should have mapped out each of the steps you need to take. Now get started on the first one. It doesn’t need to be perfect. Progress, not perfection.
6. Set mini celebrations (The SECRET SAUCE) – The one thing that has made a huge difference in the past six months for me has been setting mini goals with mini celebrations attached to them.
What I do is write 3-4 mini goals that I need to reach on the way to reaching my big goal. I’ll then set a reward for reaching each one. I put that list of 3-4 things on an A4 piece of paper with a picture of each reward and put it on the wall next my desk. Each time I go to do work, I’m motivated knowing that I’ve got a new surfboard or new iMac waiting at the end of some of my mini goals.
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Is it true that people are 99% more likely to achieve their goals if they write them down?
I believe so, see this article here: http://www.lifemastering.com/en/harvard_school.html