Why set goals? I like the metaphor used by Simon Sinek. He compared humans to ships, explaining that humans need to have a trajectory, a destination. Without it, waves distract us and steer us off course. If we just move ‘forward’ but don’t know where we’re going, life’s ‘path’ can leave us unfulfilled. Without focus, we may live and die with our ‘music’ still inside of us (Jake Ducey).
When we make excuses to withhold realizing our potential, we are taking the ‘easy road’, but when we chose the hard choices, our life overall will become easier (Jerzy Gregorek). If you are still reading this, I presume you want more from life. But, this requires “showing, and not telling” (Michael Fasbender).
Below, I’ve listed my top 8 steps to building achievable goals. By breaking these down into easy to follow steps and providing examples, I hope to simplify the process and show how easy it is to achieve.
1. Ask Questions
The usual problem with goal setting is that most people don’t know where to start. We haven’t defined what we want. We worry about whether our goals are too big, too small, too crazy, or too realistic. We’ve repeatedly heard, even from the people we love, “Oh, you can’t do that. Study and get a realistic job.” So, we do. As we get older, any dreams drift further and further away. We begin to tell ourselves that we are content, that we are ‘fine’. We’re not great, but we are fine (see Mel Robbins).
But this is the opportunity to re-evaluate where you’re at, and what you really want. What would your life to be like without (financial) limitations? Write it down. Perhaps consider prolific life goals, rather than aiming for mediocre results. Have high expectations of yourself.
I got started by using Clark Kegley’s, “11 Questions to change your life”. Kegley designed provoking questions to help define goals. See his YouTube channel, Refusing to Settle where you can download his 11 Questions for free. My favourite two questions from his prompt are, “What would make me most excited to wake up to in the morning to another day,” and “What would I do if I knew I couldn’t fail?” I wrote down responses to all his questions, and then read what I had identified as my desired results. Following Tim Ferriss’ advice, I went a step further, and wrote down what terrified me. I followed this exercise by listing what I would do in these ‘worst case scenarios’. I realized that my biggest fears, every one of them, had solutions and were unworthy of holding me back. I have allowed so many mentally-ingrained restrictions to prevent me from doing what I want to do.
2. Category Types
When I had defined my goals, my outcomes, I divided my goals into different categories. I currently use two:
- Career/ finances
- Rest and play
Within my category of ‘career and finance’, I listed investing in index funds (dividends) and stocks to develop a source of passive income. I also identified setting up a ‘brand’ that focuses on travel, learning and fulfilment. I specified developing two avenues of marketing and two ways in which I can begin to add value to others (I discuss these later) through small business ventures. Finally, I added self-development courses.
Under ‘rest and play’, I’ve included health, emotional development, relationships, travel, and hobbies. I took many of these ideas from both Refusing to Settle and Project Life Mastery. I will divide these into separate categories shortly to give each of these the consideration and development they require. Under rest and play, I wrote goals including taking four vacations in 2018, investing quality time into developing my relationship with my romantic partner, enjoying weekly dance lessons, and treating my body to spa visits.
3. Time projections
I divided career/finances and rest/play categories into one year and five year projections. This helps me measure what I want to accomplish sooner versus my longer term vision. For example, I’ve set publishing 8 kindle books as my goal for 2018. I projected that by the year 2022, I could realistically publish 30 kindle books. I’ve also set financial goals that I hope to reach through my kindle book publications. These targets are reminders of what I am striving to achieve, and keep my ‘ship’ on a path for my destination.
Having shorter and longer term goals also reminds me of how precious my peak focus-times are (usually between 11am and 1:30pm) and the urgency to work on my goals consistently despite juggling a full-time job.
Following Kegley’s advice, I learned that I only have 15,695 days before I turn eighty. While the first best time to get started on my goals was probably when I was eighteen, the next best time is right now, having gained life experience. Also, no-one around here is getting any younger. The time is now!
4. Be Specific
I recently set a goal of publishing two books before March 2018 and aiming for $200 in royalties per month from these publications. Thus, I clearly identified producing two books as well as my anticipated income. Being specific helps me to visualize my outcome and later measure whether I’m coming close to my desired result. And I’m also aware that reaching my goals will encourage me and build belief in my capabilities.
I also try to be as specific as possible when setting my goals, and while perhaps I set high financial targets for myself, I can adjust these targets later down the road. Ultimately, my goal is to achieve financial freedom by providing value to others. While money is important, this is a manifestation of being successful, and I recognize that the things I’m learning during my ‘journey’ toward my goal and the person I’m becoming is more important that the financial manifestations themselves. Thus, if I earn fifty dollars from my first two books in the first month, I will still feel motivated and proud of my achievement.
5. Review goals daily and be flexible
I re-write or re-read my goals every morning as part of my morning routine (see my post about morning rituals here). The routine of reviewing goals, particularly re-writing them frequently keeps me focused on my outcomes and these inevitably become my priorities.
I’m currently working on the K Money Mastery course presented by Stephan from Project Life Mastery. It walks clients step-by-step through Kindle book publishing process on Amazon. After watching a testimonial video on the course, I discovered that one successful fella was publishing several kindle books per month, and this helped me rethink my goals. I later decided that publishing many kindle books is a realistic target if I make this business a priority, and so I increased my target from publishing three kindle books per year to publishing eight.
Consistent review of goals is key, and I know that as I gain more self-confidence with each small success, I will develop higher expectations of myself, and these will be reflected in my goals.
6. Divide large goals and visions into quarterly chunks
Having a short term goal and a long term goal is very useful to maintain a vision of what I want to accomplish. However, to meet these larger goals, I need to break them down into more bite-sized, achievable chunks.
I recently broke down my yearly goals into three month segments, and strategically placed certain goals at the beginning of my year, and more time consuming and challenging ones toward the end. I positioned the placement of my goals in part on how I expect to progress through my online courses and what kind of results I can anticipate as I gain experience and master the processes required.
For example, as mentioned earlier, I listed that I will publish two kindle books every three months, and I added projected earnings from my publications. From January to March, I aim to earn around $200 per month; however, from October through December, having gained experience with Kindle publishing by then, and having mastered research methods, time management routines, as well as marketing techniques, I expect that my final two publications, compounded with earnings from my previous publications (totalling 8 for the year) will bring in a larger projected total income of $2,000 per month. I also suspect that I stretch my goals to publish one book per month later in the year since I will feel very confident having worked out the publishing processes. In sum, breaking down larger goals into quarterly chunks is a very practical way to realize yearly goals.
7. Devise Monthly Goals
From my quarterly goals, I scale down my goals from chunks into steps. At the beginning of every month, I create a checklist with boxes which help me realize my quarterly goals. This month, I’ve listed, “begin research for my first two kindle books.” Although I plan to publish before March, I want to get a head start on identifying all my sources, doing the research and having an outline for my books as early as possible. I may even beat my deadline target. These are precisely the smaller steps I need to work toward, day by day.
After each little accomplishment, I check it off on my list. I enjoy this process because I can see that I am completing steps which form the foundation of my larger vision. My success is already tangible.
8. My “Whys”
Finally, following the advice from Project Life Mastery, I wrote down a ‘why list’: 100 reasons why I must reach my goal. I realized that this was especially useful both while I wrote it and later, daily re-reading portions of it.
Looking at my why list reminds me of why I have to meet my goals, why I have to keep making small steps of progress every morning. It clearly outlines what my outcome may be if I don’t strive for what I’m working toward. This eighth step really is my fuel, my psychological internal and external motivation to keep pushing for what I want, and driving me to keep making every small step.
I hope you found this goal making guide useful. Take these steps at your own pace and don’t overwhelm yourself. Consistency and a little effort every day is key. Remember the analogy of the ship. You must have a very clear picture of your destination so waves don’t distract you and the music within you can come out. Seek sources of knowledge to mentor you through the process and make your vision your daily priority. How many days do you have left until you turn eighty?
Do you do anything different to plan for your goals? Can you add any extra steps, or suggest amendments? Please share in the comments below!
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