Many people struggle when setting, and then achieving, their perceived goals… Most often because they go about it the wrong way.

For a start, you have to be honest with yourself, and realize what sort of person you are. That is, are you someone who thrives and performs better with big challenges and who puts their heart and soul into a certain project… Or, like most, less confident and prefer to tackle projects one step at a time?

Either way, the point is that before you start any new endeavor, you need to know what motivates YOU!

People set their goals differently, depending on their current situation, resources available, physical ability and other factors. You can, however, follow some guidelines to make sure that your goals are credible and possible. Too many individuals set their goals too high unknowingly, only to lose interest and get disappointed for life. So here are some tips on how to set goals and actually ACHIEVE them!

You Must Be Specific!

Goals need to be specific, so that you know which part of the process you’re currently in and the particular ways on how you will achieve them. Most people have goals to get promoted, get rich, improve relationships and the like, but these are very vague and your mind can become confused about what you truly mean. General descriptions usually do not have boundaries, so you always leave room for mistakes and compromise. If you want results that you can be proud of, be specific.

To be specific, you need to include the full details. Write down something like, “I want to get $10,000 by November of this year,” or “I need to become Team Leader of the sales department by next June,” or “I want my kids, Karen and Steve, to go on the school Ski trip this year.” Include the names, the position, the amount, the date and everything else needed to train your mind to start working towards that goal.

Your Goals Must Be Measurable!

Goals need to be measurable so that you can gauge how well you have done lately. To help measure your progress, you should include measurable details. For your job, you can include details such as the number of hours you’re working, the amount you’re earning, the staff you’re handling, etc. For the goal of money, you can include details such as the amount you want to have as a whole, the number of companies or businesses you own, your contact persons, etc. For losing weight, how many lbs lost per week etc. Always have things and items to be measured so you can understand how close you are to getting your goals. If your goal is to earn $10,000 a month, then you know you’re halfway there if you’re already earning $5,000 a month.

Your Goals Must Be Realistic and Attainable!

Only set goals that can possibly be accomplished (by YOU). Some people set goals that are too high to reach, so that they are almost setting up things that are impossible. Make sure you only set objectives that you can reach within a given amount of time, provided the current resources and capabilities you have. Some examples of impossible goals are doubling your salary overnight, getting a promotion higher than your boss’s position, etc. Some goals can be achieved faster compared to others if you have some strengths and strategies to back these up. Always include a strategic plan for big objectives.

Set A Time-Scale!

Set deadlines to achieve your goals, or else you’re never going to finish anything. Stay specific when setting time-lines and schedules. For example, indicate things like “To spend an hour with my wife every day starting tomorrow (indicate exact date and year)”. Setting the exact time and date will spur you to start working on your goals (and sticking to it), instead of putting it off for another available time. Some bigger goals can take years to accomplish, so it is wiser to break these down into smaller objectives, still complete with deadlines. You can then finish everything in a planned sequence to finally reach your biggest original goal.

Just as willpower is an essential factor in achieving success, at some point in time, discouragement and lack of motivation may hinder you from reaching your objective.  And it is up to you, and you alone to devise techniques that will help you keep that drive within on fire…

It is helpful to have visual goals. whatsoever that is you are working towards, make it visual. It maybe something material like a car, or a vacation you have been looking forward to for the longest time. Take or cut out a picture of it and post it at a conspicuous place at work or at home where you can see it often. So that when you feel discouraged, this will remind you of your goal and will help you keep your spotlight.

Make a contract with yourself. According to motivational researches, people who write down to-do-lists are far more triumphant in achieving their intended goals than those people who just keep mental lists instead. Putting something in writing somehow makes it more powerful psychologically speaking. This may also be the basis why most cultures have such a high regard in honoring contracts. In the contract, you may also include a certain reward that you will give yourself once you have accomplished the task.

After all, everyone likes to be rewarded for completing a good job. Even a simple pat on the back, “good job”, or “thank you” may do the trick to give the person the additional push to carry on, but unfortunately, these may not
always be readily available. Considering that these are also essential in keeping yourself motivated, you must learn to find a way to get that encouragement on your own through pleasing yourself.

Abusive people lower your self-esteem and bring you down. Get these negative people out of your life. Surround yourself with positive people. Imitate their example. Smile often and think happy thoughts. These will give you a brighter outlook and lets you see a clearer picture of what you really want and a fresh mind to know what steps to take to get there. Rather than wait for things to happen, try to be proactive and MAKE THINGS HAPPEN. Inactivity idles the brain and stagnates your potential to reach your goals.

Read inspirational books and literature. These will help you improve your attitude and heal your mind. A book of success stories also proves to be encouraging. You will not only learn from others’ experiences and derive confidence boosting insights from them but the story will be instrumental in motivating you to go for your goal and move ahead with your plans. If this still seems to falter, get training or education.

Usually, not knowing how or where to start is frustrating. Knowledge is power. Having a clear understanding of how and where to start is empowering and it will provide the extra drive needed to hit the mark you are aiming at and follow it through.

Having enumerated all these tips and tricks to attain self-motivation, but still you seem to feel lacking that much needed drive, there is one last thing that you must try.

Whatever it is that you have been meaning to do, or wanting to achieve, JUST DO IT! Keep on aiming high and go for it! Actually getting your hands dirty best solves the problem of motivation. By “forcing” yourself to just do it, your momentum will pick up gradually as you go along and before you know it you have finished the task or have finally achieved your goal. Divide and conquer is the key.

Break down the apparently unattainable activity to small doable steps. Not only does it become less overwhelming, but seeing the “in the meantime” results will further your confidence that it can indeed be done.

Lack of motivation happens to us all, but if you do not encourage yourself to accept opportunities and be challenged, no one else will. It is most important to keep your eye on the goal, find ways to keep going, and in no time, you shall reap its benefits.

And if at the beginning you were just doing it for the material reward, you will also learn to realize that the fulfillment, satisfaction and self-achievement you derive from reaching your goal is a much enjoyable high that will keep the drive within constantly burning.

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If you want to be truly successful in how you achieve your goals, then you need to adopt the right habits and attitudes that will keep you on track. There are a number of good traits you have to keep for life to discover that more opportunities and good things are bound to happen, if only you allow these. Here are some of the features that great people have.

Being Industrious

Hard work always pays off. There is no single famous individual person in history who achieved several goals in life without working it off. Being industrious means working harder than anyone else, studying more than anyone else and even suffering more than anyone else. You have to understand the importance of delayed gratification as you work towards your ultimate goal. To begin hard work, you can begin by fixing your schedule, writing down tasks and functions of the day and finding the right people and resources that can assist you. Keep in mind that you have to be as independent as possible to finish more in the long term.

Discipline and Consistency

Discipline is what separates the leaders from the followers. If you truly want to make changes in your life, you have to understand doing things even if you do not want to at times, and maintaining excellent quality and optimum performance each time. Being consistent is intertwined with patience, wherein you continue performing well, regardless of the situations and hindrances, to render the results you want in the end.

Discipline and consistency are also interrelated, in the sense that discipline breeds consistency. If you continue practicing good habits and sticking to the functions that lead to your main goal, you will find it easier to do over time. You will change as an entire person and experience the opportunities that come with being dedicated.

Resilience

Problems are a part of everyone’s life, but it is the resilient person who always prevails and achieves their goals. You need to learn from your past mistakes and convert these into more productive actions the next time. Learn to pick yourself up after each fall and put in double effort to become better. Some of the most successful people, as well as those who truly left a mark in history are known to have faced big difficulties and resentment before they let others understand their own way of doing things.

Optimism

You need to stay positive about your situation, regardless of the problems that you face. It is vital that you stay optimistic and always believe that you will get to your goal, no matter what. If you tell yourself that you will reach it sooner, chances are you will. It might help to believe in the powers of the Universal Law of Attraction which draws opportunities toward you just the way you intend to, and in the right intensity as you desired.

Patience

Some goals are very big and will take time to accomplish. Do not allow yourself to think that some goals are just too huge to be possible. Be specific and set goals that are attainable to your current situation and start working to achieve these. You can break it down into smaller tasks that are much easier to do within the given time frame that you have.

Do YOU want success?   Learn to “be an Achiever”!