5 Top Tips For Setting Goals and Achieving Them

Do you want to stop talking about it and start doing it? Often when we set new goals we begin full of enthusiasm and then the motivation fizzles out – Why is that? Here are 5 top tips to increase your success rate!

Get a Paper and Pen because writing it down makes it more concrete and you can use it as a reminder.

1. Make sure the goal is something you really want.

‘That’s a bit obvious’ I hear you say but loads of people aim for things they think they ‘should’ do rather than want to do. So, think about what is important to you, what do you really value? Which parts of your life could do with some attention?  Work, Career, Health, Social, Finance, Personal Development, Family? What do YOU really want and by when?

2. ‘Begin with the end in mind’ – Steven Covey

Build a clear picture of where you want to end up and by when and it will be easier to know how to get there and see opportunities.  What will it feel like to achieve this goal?

3. Understand your motivators 

Write down what is important to you about achieving this goal. What will achieving this goal enable you to do or have? How will it impact positively on other areas of your life? Then write down what would be the pain of not achieving this goal? These are important, when you have thought this through it will act as a motivation towards achieving your goal!

4. Be realistic but in a positive way

Ask yourself what might stop you from achieving this? What barriers are there to be aware of and how can they be overcome? What help e.g. resources, support, training, finance will you need to achieve this?

5. Try something different

What could you do to achieve this goal, what are your options? As Einstein said ‘Insanity = doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result’ so any new idea about how you can achieve your goal is worth exploring!

Bonus Tip (because Top 6 tips doesn’t have the same ring!): ACT now

It is time to decide what you are going to do, plan your actions and take that first step. Then keep taking small steps until you reach your goal. To keep you motivated, it’s always good to have someone positive to tell about your goal and what you are doing to achieve it – it creates accountability and support.

It is amazing what you can achieve if you take time to think about what you really want and then start with the end in mind. Good Luck!