Goal Setter: five essential steps to achieve any major goal

February 13, 2018

“Where do you see yourself in five years’ time?”

It’s a question we’ve all been asked, and a question most of us dread thinking about. We all have our own aspirations of what we want to achieve in life – they’re our ‘silver linings’, our ‘light at the end of the tunnels’. But when does an aspiration become a goal that is achievable? How often do we put our thoughts to action and work toward living our major goals?

There are many stages in our lives when we decide we need a change, whether it’s starting up a business or changing careers. But it’s something we always tend to fear. We fear what it is we need to do to achieve what we want, and worst of all, we fear failure.

But failure shouldn’t be an option if you can set yourself a goal, and most importantly, achieve it. Goal setting can help motivate you to stay on track and accomplish your aspirations. Most of the successful people we know are masters at setting and reaching their goals. They know how to stay focused by taking control of their life’s direction.

We appreciate that while seeking solace and advice on ‘how to achieve a goal’ you’re more than likely going to be inundated with list after list of everything you need to do – it’s not exactly a ‘niche’ topic. It can be completely overwhelming, and worst of all, it can feed the fear.

So, we want to share with you just five essential steps you can take to achieve any major goal.

One: Get the Details in Writing

To achieve your goal, you must first determine what your goal is and be specific about what it is you want to achieve. Once you know the detail, you need to write it down. Not only does the physical act of writing down a goal help to make it real and tangible, it sets the process in motion and provokes emotion. You lose all excuses for forgetting about it. The more detailed the information you include, the more you can associate yourself with the probability of an outcome. By making the details visual you instantly activate your subconscious to work for you in the most effective way possible.

Two: Create a Plan of Action

Planning is one of the most important strategies associated with the achievement of any goal. Creating a plan of action helps bring our goals into fruition as opposed to keeping them as an abstract notion in our minds that will only get us part of the way there. Anyone who has a goal they are serious about achieving needs to create a clear and detailed action plan. The plan needs to encourage you to take action, however big or small, every single day. This will help you to stay focused and on-track towards your long-term goals. It’s important that you keep momentum and celebrate mini-achievements along the way.

Three: Become the Ultimate Time Manager

In order to successfully achieve your goal, you must take positive steps towards becoming an effective manager of your own time. If you’re not managing your time well, there’s no way you’re going to reach your goal. You need to get serious about avoiding distractions and becoming too immersed in procrastination and ‘time-wasting’. So how do you become the ultimate time manager? Find a time management system you know works and stick to it.

Four: Enlist the Help of Others

No matter how driven you are, it’s always useful to enlist the help of others. Whether they help you directly or act as a supportive figure, establish a select few individuals who you can trust to inspire you to persevere, or who will hold you accountable. They can dispense valuable advice and keep you motivated, helping bridge the gap between where you are and where you want to be.

Five: Reward Yourself Along the Way

The journey you take when achieving your goal is just as important as passing the finish line. By rewarding every mini-milestone you reach along the way, you’ll have an additional incentive to persevere aside from the big goal in and of itself. Rewards can come in all shapes in sizes, whatever the case, you need to make sure your reward system is enticing enough to motivate you to work hard but modest enough to be sustainable in the long-run. It’s important that you enjoy the process of working towards your goal to experience the full effect of actually achieving it.