How do you set goals and strive to achieve them?

A well-defined goal has important characteristics. It must be clearly defined and set out in such a way that a realistic path leads to it. It is also worth dividing it into stages spread over time, which can be achieved one by one

Why is it worth setting goals?

First of all, it is about good planning, which can make life easier. Those who say that you can’t predict everything are right. So it’s worth having some luxury in every plan in the form of time set aside for things we don’t know about, but which may surprise us. 15 or 20% of the time that is set aside for emergencies. However, it is worth setting goals. Why? Here are the reasons:

• a goal helps in achieving success – it is a kind of map, thanks to which we orient ourselves in everyday situations; we are talking about daily goals, weekly goals, goals on a macro scale – all of them bring us closer to success,
• a precise goal gives us additional motivation – we know what we are aiming at and what is behind the realization of the plan; already at the beginning we can imagine the reward that awaits us and we try even harder to achieve this state
• defining the goal helps us to determine the way to it – it is easier for us to choose the real opportunities that will bring us closer to the desired state, and it is faster to reject the wrong ways that will lead us astray; thanks to this we have a chance to achieve success in our preferred field faster than others
• realization of a clearly defined goal gives additional motivation – thanks to this we have the incentive to further action.

A goal that is SMART

A good hint on how to effectively formulate goals is given by the popular SMART method. What does it consist of? First of all, it is used in project management, but it is so simple and clear that it can also be implemented in everyday activities. Of course, not only in terms of professional development

The acronym SMART – what does it mean?

The name is an acronym from English words:

• Specific – specific,
• Measurable
• Achievable,
• Relevant,
• Time-bound.

What is a SMART goal?

Applying the SMART goal determinants, a well-defined goal should:

• be clearly specified: what and how we want to achieve it, what the effects should be. It is very important to pursue a goal that is easy to imagine from the very beginning,
• be measurable, i.e. easy to monitor or measure. We must have the tools to find out about the progress in achieving the goal,
• be achievable – we have to make sure that we have the tools to achieve our plan,
• relevant – meaning it is meaningful and valuable to us or to the person who will be trying to achieve it. We must care about it,
• be time-bound – you need to set yourself a specific amount of time to achieve the goal and its various stages.

Goal achievement – what can you do to help yourself?

With a good goal-setting tool, like the SMART principle, you need to focus on achieving your goal. In this case you need not only a map, but also motivation, a critical approach to your own actions and the ability to learn.

Motivation

straw zeal” can catch up with us in spite of a well-defined goal, which we have laid out in stages. Do not fall into slogans that do not bring much (”visualization of success”, ”sky is the limit”), but stick to facts, which should not overwhelm you. A well-defined, attainable goal, which is within our reach, should motivate us. Then the vision of future success (prosperity, promotion at work, great relationships) is very legitimate.

Critical approach

You need to be constantly critical of your own actions – after each completed step on the way to an important goal it is good to evaluate yourself. Are we really on the wrong track? Is there not a seed of future trouble lurking in the success? It is worth thinking about this

Readiness for continuous learning

On the occasion of such settlements, it is worth asking ourselves a question: is there anything we do not have, which could be of great help to us on the next stage of achieving our goal? New skills we could learn and people we could develop relationships with could help us greatly in this regard.

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