We all have hopes and dreams. Visions about what we believe that our life will be like next week, next month, next year, and so on. But how can we possibly control whether those things will happen to us? Regardless if it’s working toward something (like a new job) or away from something (leaving a toxic relationship), goal setting is the first step to taking control of that future that we’re dreaming about. Goal setting is about taking control of your life and putting forth your energy to shape your future. By setting a goal, you are making a commitment to yourself that something is important to you and that you will do what it takes to move you closer to that future.
Goals come in all shapes and sizes. Some are huge lifetime goals, while others are for the next hour (like not having that last brownie in the pan). By setting a goal, you make clear your intention to pursue a path. When I was nearing my 18th birthday, my great-grandmother talked to me about setting and writing goals. Being young and believing that I had the universe already figured out, I, of course, did not follow her advice. I continued through school and life changing my focus seemingly as often as the wind changes, somehow believing that it would all work out and I would land in a career that would fulfill me. Nearly a decade later, I saw some of the wisdom that my great-grandmother imparted to me in that conversation. She was encouraging me to move forward with purpose and to become an active participant in my life. I’d love to pretend that I have been successful and faithful with my goal setting since that discovery, but with all things, it’s a process. Sometimes I do well, and sometimes I lose sight of what’s really important to me.
I started this post with a question, “Is goal setting really all that important”. While the simple answer is yes, yes, it is. I’m not here to tell you how to live your life or pass on sage recommendations from my great-grandmother. I can share my experience that when I didn’t set goals for my life that I felt like I was caught in a storm and that life seemed to bombard me from every direction. I didn’t always feel fulfilled in my life personally or professionally. Since becoming more mindful about setting goals for myself, I have been able to grow and develop professionally, create a stable home for myself and my family, and most days feel pretty content with my life. Am I always perfect and faithful to my goals that I set in my life? No, (you know that brownie is still calling my name). Am I able to achieve all the goals that I set for myself? No, of course not. The important piece is that I state clearly what I want for myself and my life. I define what I believe it will take to get there. Sometimes that’s just a few things and other times that takes a lot of breaking the goal down into smaller goals. Regardless of my level of success with each goal, I can learn something about myself, my abilities, and how important this goal actually is to me. I may find that I set a goal that I can’t seem to make any progress on; maybe I haven’t broken it down enough or maybe it’s really not all that important to me.
Activity: Write your answers to:
· What is something that you really want in your life?
· What is that you hope will come to you in your future?
· What can you do in your life to make that hope more likely to come your way?
Goal experts would encourage SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and time-bound) goals, but I would first start with just clearly stating, in as much detail as possible, what that goal is. Try to break this goal down as much as possible. What actions do you need to take today, tomorrow, next week, next month, etc. to help you make progress on this goal? Write it down to help hold yourself accountable.
What next? After a couple of days or weeks, follow-up on your goal that you wrote. How are you doing with it? What have you learned about yourself and your efforts while working on this goal? What will your next step be?
I hope your dreams for the future come true, but until that time you’ll have to keep working towards it.
Comments