May your walls know joy, may every room hold laughter, and every window open to great possibility. – Mary Anne Radmacher
This week is a big week for planning. What will be for next year?
The thing is, you need to know how you did this year. I looked back on my goals for 2013 and though I made a great deal of progress there was still more I could have done to complete the goal.
This is truly a very good lesson.
I worked with a client recently in a Network Marketing company, who also found that the goals she set were much more aggressive in comparison to the amount of focus and time she gave this goal.
Goal setting is an art. The difference between having an outstanding year vs a good year is the quality of goal you set.
You may be thinking: I am lucky if I get my goals set!
Yes, I agree that this is the foundation. Get your goals identified and down on paper.
It is when you have lived the year, paid attention to the goals you set 12 months earlier and find that the progress you made on your stated goals for your focus fell short. This is where the goal setting becomes an art. This is where self-honesty enters the picture.
Dreaming is a part of goal setting. Without dreams we have no compelling vision of our future. Yet, the art of goal setting dictates that you be realistic with what truly is your commitment to focusing time on your goal in order to achieve it.
Here are 7 Steps to Creating Outstanding Goals:
1. Write down all the dreams you have and want to achieve. Pay no attention to the time frame just let your stream of consciousness run. Do not filter or judge, just write.
2. Label each entry as to the amount of years it will take to achieve this goal. 1Year, 2 years, 5 years, 10 years, etc.
3. Make another list with just your 1 year goals.
4. Review this list and write them out so they follow the SMART Goal Setting Formula.
S = specific
M = measurable
A = actions and accountability
R = Is this goal reasonable and /or realistic?
T = Time frame (I have asked you to do this for your 1 year goals so that is the Time Frame.
5. Review your list of goals. How many do you have? Next to each write by when in the 2014 you want to achieve or complete the goal.
6. Review the list again. ESTIMATE how much time each goal will take. 1 week may equal 40 hours. Work at estimating the number of hours each goal will require and write it next to the goal.
7. Finalize Your Goal List. This is the hardest step. YOU MUST BE HONEST WITH YOURSELF. When you examine the total time you have estimated to achieve all of your goals, is this reasonable and realistic for you to devote to these goals in the next 12 months? The answer is yours. Be honest, know yourself. Set yourself up for wins. If you can honestly say YES to 2 goals, then pick the 2 which are the highest priority. If it is 4 then prioritize the 4.
What I have learned is that the more focus I have on fewer goals the quicker they are achieved. This then allows me to bring in goals from the original list that may have not made the cut into the list of MUST GOALS. It feels good to be successful!! You deserve to have that feeling.
This is how to have an OUTSTANDING YEAR VS a GOOD YEAR!!!
Make 2014 an OUTSTANDING YEAR!!!
CALL TO ACTION: Please complete Goal Setting Steps 1-7. Important, get into your most positive can do emotional state. When you are done, send me your goals. They are not shared with anyone.
Taking this step to send them is making a commitment that makes this bigger then just yourself.
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!
This is my wish for you: peace of mind, prosperity through the year, happiness that multiplies, health for you and yours, fun around every corner, energy to chase your dreams, joy to fill your holidays! – D.M. Dellinger
Much Success,
Sara