By Alex Work
We have all heard about SMART. SMART goals this, SMART goals that. Is that all there is to goal setting? Of course not!
Here are seven things you should be thinking about when you are setting goals:
1. Goal setting is messy. Chasing after our dreams is rarely a journey without casualties. Usually it's our pride or self-confidence that fall victim to plans that were a little ambitious. Either way, making radical changes to our lives is not a cut-and-paste process, it requires getting a little dirty sometimes. Accept that things won't go according to plan, and vow to see it through.
2. Stop doing the same thing. We have this weird habit of falling back into patterns, promises and goals that are familiar to us. Why do we do this? We're creatures of habit. If you bombed at a goal to run a marathon, don't take the same approach. Try something different until you find something that works.
3. Don't make ridiculous goals. "I am going to go to the gym every day" is a toughie. What if you get sick? If you miss a day to pneumonia does that mean you've failed? Be realistic about what you are capable of.
4. Surprises are coming your way. Nothing even goes according to plan a hundred percent of the time. If it did we wouldn't have protracted wars, famine, or deviance. If our plans fell in place every time it would be a boring place to live. Accept that things are going to go askew from time to time, and be willing to not let yourself get knocked off the proverbial horse when that first big surprise comes bouldering down at you from the top of your mountain.
5. Too much change isn't a good thing. We need time to break bad habits. It's extremely difficult to unshackle ourselves from years or decades of sloppy habits and attitudes. Don't expect a miracle change overnight. Trying to change too many things at once will water down your efforts. Focus your energies on changing one or two things at a time.
6. Don't make your goal public until you have really thought it through. Big public declarations generally only make you look silly in the long run. And this makes you less likely to strive to make big, positive changes in your life the next time around. Research your goal, get a good idea of whether it is realistic or not, and then dive into it.
7. Start Immediately. Waiting until next week, next month, New Years or whatever to start something ensures that you will never get to it. If it's so worth accomplishing, why on earth would you want to wait another day to get started? The desire to create life-lasting change should originate from your passions and motivations, not a date on the calendar.
Here are seven things you should be thinking about when you are setting goals:
1. Goal setting is messy. Chasing after our dreams is rarely a journey without casualties. Usually it's our pride or self-confidence that fall victim to plans that were a little ambitious. Either way, making radical changes to our lives is not a cut-and-paste process, it requires getting a little dirty sometimes. Accept that things won't go according to plan, and vow to see it through.
2. Stop doing the same thing. We have this weird habit of falling back into patterns, promises and goals that are familiar to us. Why do we do this? We're creatures of habit. If you bombed at a goal to run a marathon, don't take the same approach. Try something different until you find something that works.
3. Don't make ridiculous goals. "I am going to go to the gym every day" is a toughie. What if you get sick? If you miss a day to pneumonia does that mean you've failed? Be realistic about what you are capable of.
4. Surprises are coming your way. Nothing even goes according to plan a hundred percent of the time. If it did we wouldn't have protracted wars, famine, or deviance. If our plans fell in place every time it would be a boring place to live. Accept that things are going to go askew from time to time, and be willing to not let yourself get knocked off the proverbial horse when that first big surprise comes bouldering down at you from the top of your mountain.
5. Too much change isn't a good thing. We need time to break bad habits. It's extremely difficult to unshackle ourselves from years or decades of sloppy habits and attitudes. Don't expect a miracle change overnight. Trying to change too many things at once will water down your efforts. Focus your energies on changing one or two things at a time.
6. Don't make your goal public until you have really thought it through. Big public declarations generally only make you look silly in the long run. And this makes you less likely to strive to make big, positive changes in your life the next time around. Research your goal, get a good idea of whether it is realistic or not, and then dive into it.
7. Start Immediately. Waiting until next week, next month, New Years or whatever to start something ensures that you will never get to it. If it's so worth accomplishing, why on earth would you want to wait another day to get started? The desire to create life-lasting change should originate from your passions and motivations, not a date on the calendar.
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