STRATEGIC GOAL SETTING

Anyone who has ever attempted to set goals knows how difficult it could be to set realistic goals and to be able to attain them. In order to do so, it is very important to have a fool-proof strategy. K.I.S.S. is a strategy that makes setting and attaining goals very easy. The acronym K.I.S.S. stands for “Keep It Simple Silly” and it embodies a strategy that is very simplistic in nature but is extremely powerful. This strategy is tried and true and it can be best conceptualized as involving several keys and goal setting secrets. It is a solution-focused method and as such it allows the user to attain goals in a shorter period of time than other methods. The keys to using this method are as follows:

❶ Set goals that you can visualize. This is the most important step in goal setting and attainment. In order to be able to fulfill a goal, it is important for you to have a clear picture of your goal and all that it encompasses. You should have a clear conceptualization of where you are at the current time, where you would like to be at a predetermined time in the future and the direction you need to travel in order to get to your goal. When you can clearly visualize that, then you are able to achieve your goal. The visualization of your goal makes that goal more believable and thus more achievable. The key here is to never underestimate the power of visualization. It may be very helpful for you to actually get pictures that represent your goal. Use those pictures to create a goals board. A goals board is a collage of pictures that represent your goals and intermediary milestones. It is best to place your goals board in a location where you are likely to see it frequently. In so doing, you have a constant reminder of the goals you are working towards. This may seem silly but it really works.

❷ Create an action plan. Action plans are at the heart of goal setting and attainment. In order to achieve a goal, you must be able to visualize that goal and create a roadmap to achieving that goal. Your action plan is that roadmap. It outlines all of the necessary steps that must be taken in order to attain a goal. It also outlines the obstacles you may face on your way to realizing your goal(s).

❸ Micromanaging your goal-related tasks. In order to achieve your goals, it is important to work towards that goal on a daily basis. It is essential to focus on the tasks that need to be done in order to achieve your goal in a timely manner. In this vein, it is imperative that you create a timeline and adhere to that timeline. The timeline should include milestones as they serve as a motivational tool. Milestones also track your progress towards your goals and they serve as encouragement as you achieve your goals. They are reminders of how much you have achieved on your way to realizing your goals.

❹ Keep track of your time. Time tracking is another important part of achieving goals. It is important for you to manage your time wisely. Wise time management enables you to maximize your time use. In order to achieve your goals it is important to get the vital things done first. One of the keys to goal achievement is the ability to work wisely. Working wisely allows one to work less and achieve more. Time tracking is an important step in wise goal achievement.

❺ Journaling. A goals journal is an integral part of setting realistic goals and attaining them. The journal serves multiple purposes. One of the most fundamental purposes for keeping a goals journal is to examine your feelings about your goals and to record your progress towards attaining those goals. It allows you to focus on your goals, to enjoy the small steps towards attaining those goals and serves as a motivational force for goal achievement. It can also serve as a means of self-discovery while working towards an achievable goal.

❻ Reviewing your progress. It is important to review your progress on a regular basis as it creates a framework for viewing your achievement as you work towards a realistic goal. Additionally, it allows you to make note of the completed task and serves as encouragement on your way to goal attainment. Reviewing your progress allows you to stay positive, focused and motivated.

 ❼ Establishing positive habits. Habits are fundamental to goal establishment. They allow us to stay on track and lead to the development of a systematic approach to achievement. One of the essential habits that needs to be established is a daily routine. Daily routines enable us to keep on task and to achieve our goals in a timely manner. In establishing positive habits you are able to view your thoughts and behaviors and make the necessary modifications. The establishment of positive habits serves as a means of fast tracking your goal achievement.  

                               GOAL SETTING SECRETS

There are many little known secrets to goal setting and attainment. Some of the secrets seem rudimentary in nature but their practical application can be illusive at times. These secrets are very important you wish to achieve your goals.

❶ Get organized. When you set your goals, it is easy to become overwhelmed by the scope of your goals and the multitude of tasks you need to accomplish in order to achieve them. This is natural for anyone who is serious about achieving a goal. Being constantly overwhelmed and experiencing a feeling of helplessness is counterproductive to achieving your goal. Getting the things we truly deserve in our personal and professional lives require a great deal of organization. It is imperative for us to spend some time during our day to get organized. Personally, I use a to-do list daily to capture the many tasks that I complete on a daily basis. I generally create my to-do list the night before during my quiet time. It can be completed while watching T.V. or doing some other passive activity that does not require salient thought. Organization is the key to getting more out of your day. Plan!!!! Plan!!!! Plan!!!! In planning you will realize that there are unplanned events during the day. Allot time for those unplanned events. This will prevent you from becoming overwhelmed.

❷ Set S.M.A.R.T. goals.  When setting goals, it is imperative to set “SMART” goals. “SMART” goals are goals that are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time bounded. An example of a general goal would be a goal “to get fit”. This is not a SMART goal because it is not specific enough, there is no way of measuring the results because it is too general, one would have trouble completing it because it is not well-defined and there is no time frame for its completion. A SMART goal would be to “Join a health club by the end of the month and workout five days a week for the next three months.” In the latter example, there is a specific goal, one that is measurable by weight loss or some other means, one that is both achievable and realistic and there is a clear time frame for that goal. In planning for that goal, you can meet with a fitness instructor and design a plan for getting in shape over the next three months.

❸ Visualize your goals. The ability to visualize your goals is key to goal achievement. It is important for you to link your goals to motivational pictures. This is best done by creating a goals board. The board is a place for you to create a visual representation of the goals you wish to achieve. Place the board in a location where it can be frequently viewed and you are well on your way to goal achievement.

❹ Take enormous action. When it comes to achieving your goals, action definitely speaks louder than words. Writing your goals down and tracking them is not enough to achieve your goals. Those are just the beginning steps. Experience has taught me that oftentimes people fail to reach their goals because they generally procrastinate and find excuses for their lack of action. Goal setting is not just about conceptualizing your goals, it is a systematic method for achieving goals that extends well beyond writing your goals down. It is imperative to take enormous action in order to achieve those goals. This enormous action comes in the form of daily working at achieving your goals. Let’s say your business goal is to expand your customer base by 20% within the next three months. In order to do so, it is necessary to assure that your advertisement reaches more people, explore the internet as a means of increasing business and to create a new and fresh advertisement campaign. In order to reach this goal, it is necessary to do several task on a daily basis. For instance, you can make a vow to speak to at least three people about your business on a daily basis or you may choose to give out ten business cards daily. Whatever your actions are, they have to be on a grand scale and you have to be consistent in working on achieving your goals. 

❺ Plan your day and become the master of your to-do list. After you have created your action plan it is imperative that you devise a system that allows you to complete the essential tasks of your goal in a timely manner. One of the best ways to do this is to plan your day carefully and to create feasible daily to-do lists. Your to-do list enables you to feel motivated as you achieve your goals. One of the best ways to create a to-do list is to utilize a flexible day planner. A flexible day planner will allow you to organize your day without becoming overwhelmed as a result of the many tasks you need to complete. The flexible day planner can be easily ported as you go through your day. You can take the day planner everywhere and as you complete your tasks, you can keep track of the uncompleted tasks easily.

❻ Manage your time wisely and fast-track your goals. The notion that time management is vital to goal setting and attainment is one that is not foreign to many of us. Many of us seem to know how vital it is to achieving our goals but many of us fail to master time management. Effective time management is the foundation on which goal setting and attainment is built. In order to measure your time utilization, you need to track the way in which you spend your time and the amount of time you spend completing each task on your way to achieving each goal. Not only will you be able to see how much time you spend on each individual goal but you can get a good idea of the total time you spend working each day. Keep in mind that many people set goals each day and use to-do lists to accomplish them but those people still fail to achieve their goals. Why? Unwise time management. Many of those individuals fail to spend enough time on their goals thus making those goals illusive at best.

❼ Create a goals journal. It's easy to lose track of your goals especially if you are working towards a difficult long-term goal. A Goal Journal is easy to create and it gives an objective method to track your progress and plans. In addition to tracking your progress, it allows you to modify plans when things are not going so well and it holds you accountable for achieving your goals. 

A daily journal allows you to focus on your goals and allows you to set and achieve milestones. This is extremely simple and all it takes is about five to ten minutes before you go to bed. In that time, you can write about the process made towards achieving your goal, your feelings associated with your quest towards a well-defined goal, the events that occurred while trying to accomplish your goal and the choices you had to make along the way.

❽ Review your goal frequently. Many people fail to check their goals on a regular basis. Some individuals do an annual check but that is not sufficient to keep you motivated and on the way to achieving your goals. You should include a regular review of your goals in both your action plan and your daily to-do list. Ideally, a goal review should be done daily and the planning of the necessary goal-related tasks should be included in your daily to-do list. This allows you to achieve your goals in a more effective and efficient manner. It is important to remember that if you don’t think about your goals and plan for them, it will be impossible to achieve them. In reading this mini manual, it would appear that the task of strategic goal setting is quite cumbersome and time consuming but the opposite is true. It does not take much time out of your daily schedule to focus on your goal and work towards achieving them. Let me break it down for you in terms of actual planning time. Your daily to-do list requires about five to ten minutes to complete and can be done in your leisure time while watching T.V. Your goals journal requires about the same time and can also be done while you watch T.V. Actually working towards your goal varies greatly and is dependent on the nature of the goal you wish to accomplish. You should plan to dedicate at least an hour a day working on your goals. Treat goal attainment in the same manner as you treat your gainful employment. Work at goal achievement every day and you will reap the rewards of having set attainable goals and achieving them. Remember if you don’t think about your goals, you will never achieve them. Never forget failure to plan equates with planning to fail.

Plan!!!! Plan!!!! Plan!!!!