Goals are one of those things that seem easy in principle but hard to follow through with. Goals are so subjective and at times very difficult to measure. And if setting goals is something new it can become very daunting very quickly. I have always been a goal setter, but I was never very good at following through. Which as I found can be very discouraging. The easiest way to put this into prospective is with the infamous “NEW YEARS RESOLUTION”. Everyone has made one from one year to the next, but how many actually follow through with them.
What makes these resolutions so hard to stick to? My answer is that most of these resolutions/goals are too ambiguous and open. The big one is to get into shape, or lose weight. So you go out buy a gym membership, go a few times and then it is over. Statistics show that 25% of New Year Resolutions made will be dropped within the first week, and almost 40% are dropped by the end of January. I have to admit I am one of the not so successful resolution setters. I had all the greatest intentions in the world, but it was too easy to find excuses, and not follow through. The question is why IS it so easy to give up?
So doing what any level headed person would do…I turned to the internet for answers. Funny enough all the information I found on setting and keeping goals is stuff that I ALREADY knew. HUh? Go figure. If I just put forward a goal with the information I already know then I would be more successful…could it really be that easy?
So here is the plan that I will follow when I make my 3 goals for the next 6 weeks…
- Write it down and have it somewhere you can see it on a regular basis.
- Tell someone (others) of your goal, and ask them to remind you of the goal(s) on a regular basis
- Make it real, make it tangible, make it achievable.
- Give yourself milestones of measurement, and reflection to help keep you on the right path
- Have a plan of action. What steps are you going to take to achieve the goal(s).
As I formulate my 3 6 week goals, I will use these 5 tools as well and see if I have a better result.