It’s that time again where we get jazzed about what we want for the coming year. Something similar to the concept of declaring New Year’s resolutions for oneself but a bit more robust and longer lasting.
Goals are intentional declarations for a roadmap to design our life on our terms.
The following are 5 surefire ways to successfully achieve your goals.
Be clear on what it is you want for yourself.
Understanding your requirements for your goal is a key step. This allows you to use this as a barometer for success when the goal is achieved. So not only are you outlining the requirements of the goal, you are also outlining what success looks like. This can also be used as an input for staying motivated in accomplishing your goals.
One technique that can be leveraged to strengthen your goal requirements is the use of the common S.M.A.R.T. acronym created by management expert Peter Drucker. S.M.A.R.T. goals provide an opportunity to gain clarity by expanding the requirements of a goal.
Using each letter in the acronym;
- a person can identify the specific goal requirements
- the means for measuring the success of the goal
- the acceptability of the goal
- provoke thought around how realistic the goal is and make necessary tweaks if need be
- and finally include a time constraint for the goal
Regular goal
Accomplish $120,000 in sales in 2018.
V.S.
S.M.A.R.T. goal
By December 31, 2018, I will achieve $120,000 in sales in my business by leveraging book sales, paid speaking engagement, affiliate marketing and product sales on my website, and delivering custom training courses on and offline. The goal is to make $10,000 in sales monthly.
Can you see the difference in the richness of the S.M.A.R.T. goal? Which one inspires you to take action?
Before taking action, spend a LOT of time planning out your goals.
There’s a saying that 95% and upwards of projects fail due to poor planning. The same can apply to goals, which are mini projects we must take ownership of and successfully deliver. Most people jump to the action before fully getting out what’s required to achieve their goals.
In the field of project management, there’s a tool called a work-breakdown-structure used to identify the tangible outcomes for a project. In other words, what are my big bucket items and what do I need to do to accomplish them. It’s a way to breakdown the elements in your goal. When coaching clients that want to choose a new path, we spend the time unearthing their big bucket items and subsequently the actions required to achieve them.
Hire some help.
Once you figure out what steps are required to accomplish your goal, dole out the work with deadlines to support the achievement of your goals. A great online tool for this is Asana where you can highlight a goal and then assign tasks to those involved in making it a reality.
Another great way to get help would be to hire a Virtual Assistant to handle the administrative tasks that may bog you down in order to free up your time to make you more effective on tasks you personally need to spend time on. Prioritize the tasks that you need to handle versus what can be outsourced and take action accordingly.
Location, location, location.
Keeping your goals visible is a surefire way to ensure action. It is less likely that you’ll take no action when you’re fully aware of goals you set for yourself. Therefore, I suggest you identify high visibility spots to keep your goal(s) front and center in order to keep yourself accountable. Some examples include technology (i.e. smart phone, computer), bathroom, kitchen, bedroom where you can write down your goal of the month or list out your daily to-do list. The point is you can run but you can’t hide, help yourself to keep yourself accountable! I daresay most people store their goals in a place that’s not a high traffic area in their lives.
Tip: Leverage your high traffic areas to prominently display the goals you have set for yourself! Michaels or another craft store might be just the place to secure some mini bulletin boards to display and refresh your goals on a regular basis.
Take time to celebrate your success.
As Kool and the Gang sung in the popular and memorable song, Celebration Time, “let’s all celebrate and have a good time”. Celebration is a key component to your success. It’s forgotten as one of the important motivators to successfully achieving your goals. I recently delivered a successful action planning workshop worthy of celebration. There is something about coming full circle with your goal by celebrating its success. It says I wanted this for myself and I intentionally took action to create it! Yay Me!
Although it’s fun to spend, it’s important to note that celebration doesn’t have to include money. One example was treating myself to some reading time. I did this by making the time to visit my favorite library and perusing the latest leadership books for women. Cost wasn’t a huge factor as it was a low cost powerful reward that made me super happy!
Bonus:
- Partner yourself with someone you trust and is supportive and can hold you accountable for the goals you’ve outlined for yourself.
Take heed these ways to set yourself up for success in 2018 and beyond. Remember, you are the master of your destiny and in essence responsible for taking the necessary actions to achieve your goals.
Simone Morris is CEO of Simone Morris Enterprises LLC, a certified woman owned business that offers consulting, coaching, training, workshops and retreats. She has a passion for empowering women to succeed. She is a certified life coach and certified project management professional and has also authored the book “Achievement Unlocked: Strategies to Set Goals and and Manifest Them”. She offers annual goal setting and planning retreats every January.