Imagine trying to drive across the country with no directions in hand. No GPS, no smartphone, no MapQuest print outs (if you still do that). Just yourself and a car.
Could you do it? How long would it take before you got lost? Before you took a wrong turn? Before you decided to give up & just go back home? Maybe you have an idea of where you’re going, but the lack of direction has made it significantly harder.
The same thing happens in our lives when we don’t set goals for ourselves!
Failing to set goals is like driving across the country without directions. You’re just going through life with a vague idea of where you want to be, but no real plan or idea of how to get there.
If this is how you feel, than I have one simple message for you …
STOP THINKING YOU DON’T NEED GOALS FOR YOURSELF!
Do you think the most successful people in the world got to where they are today without setting goals for themselves? People like Dwayne Johnson or Elon Musk or Oprah Winfrey?
Of course not!
Setting goals is an important part of living the life you want to live, rather than living the life that is thrown at you. Once you set goals for yourself, you not only define what you want in life, but you define the steps that will get you to that point.
You can achieve anything you want when you set goals. How awesome is that?!
Think setting goals is a waste of time?
Six months ago, I was known as a busser for the restaurant I work at – only capable of cleaning dirty tables, running food & helping to stock the bar. By setting goals for myself & defining where I wanted to go, I am now an assistant general manager for the same company. In addition to being responsible for overseeing the daily operations of the restaurant when I’m on the clock, I’ve been tasked with developing training programs for the staff of three different restaurants.
I didn’t here because of luck. I didn’t get here because I simply thought about what I wanted or had a general idea of where I’d like to be.
I got to where I want to be by setting clear goals for myself & achieving those goals!
My goals don’t stop at career ambitions. I have everything from relationships goals, financial goals, personal development goals, diet/exercise goals – you name it!
Anything I want to achieve in life has been expressed in a clearly defined goal. There’s no reason for you to not do the same. The world is yours when you know what you want & how to take it!
I CHALLENGE YOU TO SET A NEW GOAL TODAY!
If you’re one of those people who doesn’t have goals for themselves – or has been struggling with the goals you do have – here is what you can do right now to set your goals, achieve them & live your best life every day:
- Take a few minutes to think about one thing that you really want to achieve in life & why you want to achieve it. Strong desire is key here. As long as this is something that you truly want, it is within your reach. Once you know what you want & why, write it down on a piece of paper. It is not good enough to just have the idea in your head. Here is a simple example:
I want to lose weight because I am unhappy with my appearance, which is hurting my confidence & self esteem.
- Next, you need to turn the statement of what you want into a statement of action. Make sure to be as specific, reasonable & time oriented with this as you can. Failing to do so will just leave you with a vague idea of what you want, making it impossible to achieve. Here is an example of turning your desire into a strong statement of action:
Lose fifteen pounds in six months.
- After doing this, write two or three steps that you can take to achieve this goal. Again, you’ll want to be as specific as possible with these steps. Here is an example:
Go to the gym three times per week.
Track my daily calories.
Eat fruits & vegetables every day.
- The final and most important step is to work every day to achieve your goal! Anyone can think of what they want, write a goal down & list steps to achieve that goal. But unless you actually follow through with it all, you are wasting your time! Begin & end each day by reading your goal so you can ask yourself “What can I do today to achieve this?”
If you follow these steps, I have no doubt that you will achieve your goals & begin living the life you want to live. I know that it has worked for me & so many other people, so why not let it work for you?
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What goals do you have for yourself? What goals would you like to have for yourself? Was this article helpful? Comment below & let me know what you think!
Andrew Kissling 