Are you ready to live a highly successful life, achieve all of your goals, and enjoy the success you know deep down that you really deserve? If your answer is yes then before you go any further you must answer the following searching question.
Just what is your purpose in life? If you dont have a ready answer, dont be too surprised. Even the greatest of the philosophers who have ever lived succeeded only in making this question more profound. Why? Because the answer lies not in simply knowing what is your purpose in life but lies in discovering what is your goal in life. The last one is only possible if you have already gone through the process of goal setting.
Soul searching is actually personal goal setting in its infancy. The only problem is that for many people that infant never grows up into maturity. The person involved in soul searching might dismiss this process as nothing but being sentimental. Without realizing it, the person has just killed the infant, or his chance to flesh out the course of his purpose driven life.
But luckily, soul searching is a recurring process. So the next time you have been given the honor of another visit, be mindful.
Personal goal setting is a powerful tool for setting a course for a meaningful and fulfilling life. The process of personal goal setting in itself is powerful enough so that if you are going through with the process you might think that your lifes meaning or purpose had been found. But it is not. The euphoria is only a result of your self finally realizing that you are on the right track.
For some, the process itself is motivating. Once you have found a way of making this a habit, you will soon realize that achieving your goals that look like impenetrable walls in the past is nothing but a purpose that needs a set of personal goals as the key.
Personal goal setting: what should be set?
Since there is more to life than the four letters that it represents, personal goal setting involves a review of all the aspects of your life, and all of these should have a corresponding goal. But before going to the process of setting up goals, you must have one general goal that encompasses all the other goals. In fact the other and smaller goals should work in the service of this large goal of yours.
1 Career. What aspect of your career do you think needs an improvement? Or perhaps, ask yourself, is it time for a new career?
2 Outlook or attitude. Is there a part of you, particularly on how you perceive things, that needs to be changed?
3 Financial. Do you have a clear projection as to how much you should be earning in a particular moment in your life? This aspect is closely related with career, so better review and come out with a goal with these two side by side.
4 Potential development. Perhaps some of your talents and skills need an improvement, or are maybe already clamoring for an improvement. Life, after all, is discovering your potential and developing it in the process.
5 Academic. Perhaps you are no longer getting any mental stimulation lately. Maybe your education related goals have expired many years ago. Perhaps it is time to go back to school for another degree, or engage in some thought provoking activities.
6 Family. What is your idea of a family? Getting married, having and raising kids? When? How?
7 Social involvement. Perhaps you want to help achieve something that would make the world a better place? Perhaps you are into animal protection, environmental concerns, and human rights issues?
These are just some aspects that generally come to mind when it comes to personal matters. If you feel or think that this list is not enough, or does not fit well with you, you may add or change it. Remember, personal goal setting is what its name is, a personal task. It is all up to you to device it and make it happen.
This article has just scratched the surface as far as goal setting is concerned. There is a lot more information out there in such places as the local library, the local bookstore, and also there are a number of very helpful Blogs on this subject.

It seems like every personal development coach has something to say about goal setting. It seems as though every seminar you attend, some goal setting seems to be sprinkled in to the day. So, why is goal setting so important, and why does it work?
We start life with high hopes. We all do. However, at the end, only a handful will look upon there lives with contentment. So few realize an amazing life, because of feelings of being limited. These feelings of being limited are a big concern.
If we look at life, we see that out of 100 people interviewed at a 25, all with high hopes, only 5 will be financially independent. And this does not just apply to money, as these 5 people generally live the life they want. So many don’t however.
There is another interesting correlation, and I think they are linked. Only 4-7 people out of 100 set goals. And it is amazing to see, because if you ask those 5 people in the 100, they do one thing in common and that is set goals.
If we consider that 7 people will set goals, and only 5 achieve then that says to us that the other 2 who failed, even though they set goals, is because of setting a goal they are not passionate about achieving. The truth is that goal setting does work, and has worked for all people since the beginning of time.
If you consider for a moment life as a goal setter, and life as a drifting purposeless endeavor, you can see that without a goal how will we get anywhere? Goal setting works because it causes us to focus on what we want. It is like watching television. While watching television, you can get so absorbed into the TV, that the actual TV set disappears!
That focus in our goals gives us a direction. It focuses our minds, and we can look at how we can make those goals reality. And this process can be simple, smart or full of so many components that it is hard to move forward.
By far the biggest achievers are goal setters. They think about what they want, and then move forward to make those goals reality. It is simplicity in itself, and here is how it works. We are goal orientated beings. We feel hungry, and we go and get food. We feel like going on vacation, and take steps to get there.
Goal setting can be viewed in such light, and can really transform your life. If you let it. So what is one goal that you really want to achieve? Go do it, and then tell me about it.

You have heard everyone in the personal development world, tell you the importance of goal setting, but is goal setting that important? Why should you hold to the belief of the importance of goal setting, and actually set goals?
Let’s face it, the majority of people in the main, are negative. We hear all of what is not possible, we hear that there is no hope, and friends and family often do not help with giving us a positive mental attitude.
Why is your mental attitude got to do with the importance of goal setting? If we listen to those that offer the negative advice of what is not possible, then we simply end up living life like the majority, and that is mediocrity. Lack and limitation exist for a population that simply fringes on the possibilities. Often they will term riches and wealth as good luck.
The importance of goal setting now comes into effect for the person who sees a glimmer of hope. You take a look, and see the possibilities, like a ray of light, you see through the darkness, and come to know something new – that you have been lied to.
Whether with no money, no relationships, bad health, you can transform to have wealth, great loving relationships, and health prosperity. All this becomes possible with goal setting. The importance of goal setting now becomes known.
The few who achieve set goals. Though all set goals to some degree, the winners in life have decided on a goal, rather than let life throw them about how it sees fit. Friends, family and society though with good intentions have not seen the truth.
To achieve anything worthy, you need to know what it is. Daydreamers lurk in many office buildings, dreaming of being in a Yacht, going on a cruise, even some more adventurous possibilities, such as sky diving, etc.
The few who achieve know a few things. When you learn these, you will also get great results. The first is to dream, but keep that dream based in reality. There is no point thinking of being like Superman as that is daydreaming. Also the Yacht may not be what you really want. What do you really want, and more importantly why do you want it.
The importance of goal setting becomes more known now. The true successful, once setting goals do what the majority wont. The majority will daydream, but never take action. They will do what we call escapism. The daydreaming is a fantasy to let the time pass, but the importance of goal setting, is to take action on what you desire.
The importance of goal setting must also be put into perspective, before closing this article. The process of consciously goal setting is not the be all and end all of success. It is only a guidance system. Like having the sand, cement and water, next you have to mix it.
Once you have your cement, it is time to do the work. You must now act, you must create the building, there is no point sitting and saying I have the ingredients. The sweating and the action is what will bring your goal to reality. To get to the park, you have to walk there.

#1 — Define Your Goals

A goal is a target toward which you move, but it’s something more than that. There is something almost mystical about a crystallized goal when you have developed a plan and set a deadline for its attainment. In some miraculous way, a crystallized goal brings everything into the shape, form, and focus necessary for its achievement. Whether it is people you need, money or ideas, all the ingredients of success seem to fall into line right on the exact time table to hit your target date.

How do you define your goal? Simply write down your dreams and crystallize your thinking. Next, develop a plan with a deadline for attaining your goal. Be sure to include in your plan some of the obstacles you may encounter along the way, and your strategies for overcoming them. Write out your clearly-defined goals, because having written goals will help keep you on track and serve as a checkpoint. 

#2 — Embrace Adversity

If you are goal-directed and you know what you are going to achieve, then any temporary adversity or any challenging obstacle doesn’t dim or dampen your enthusiasm. Nor does it subject you to fear, worry, and indecision or negative thinking. All it does is intensify your desire, increase your self-confidence, and multiply your determination. Then when the obstacles are overcome, you are stronger because you learned from that temporary setback.

If you refuse to be discouraged by adversities, success comes in unpredictable multiples. It has happened to me time and time again! If you believe in your goals enough to stick with them, when you finally do put it all together your success will be much bigger than you even expected. Keep this in mind: never take your eye off your goal, do not be diverted or discouraged. When you face obstacles or adversity, learn to say, “I have a problem, what’s good about it? How can I use it to move me toward my goal?”  and you’re one step closer.

#3 — Make Success a Habit

Several different types of goals are necessary, including short-range or immediate, and long-range or ultimate. An immediate goal could take a day or six months, whereas an ultimate goal may take several years or even a lifetime to accomplish. Here’s some tried and true advice: Do not make the mistake of dwelling on the distant future only. Be sure to focus on an action you can take today, even if it is no more than listing on a card the jobs that you are going to do today.

The habit of setting goals is developed just as any other habit is acquired. Effective goal setting is a habit that is the key to your success! You must consciously choose to set goals and then practice doing it until you have internalized the process and it becomes automatic. Believe in your goals and believe in yourself.

#4 — Your Million Dollar Success Plan

As you move toward your goals, you may want to use the five points that I call the “Million Dollar Success Plan.” These are the criteria that I use to measure every goal I undertake. I do not go after anything until I ask these five questions:

1) Have I crystallized my thinking about it? If so, do I have …

2) A plan and a deadline for its attainment?

3) A burning desire, that white heat of passion down inside myself that says I must move forward?

4) Confidence in myself and my ability to succeed?

5) An iron-will determination that says, “I’m going to accomplish this no matter what”?

When you can answer “yes” to those five questions, then ask one more: “Is it worth it to me?” If it is, then go for it! You know that you have what it takes to accomplish your goals no matter what happens, no matter who criticizes, no matter whether you have the money, and no matter what you now lack in experience. When you set goals without setting arbitrary limits, you are free to move as far as you want to go.

You are never promised that the road to success is completely smooth. Along your journey you will discover that it’s not what happens in life that’s important. It is your attitude toward what happens to you that makes all the difference, so be sure to stay positive. Master the art of goal setting and the world is your oyster!

This interview is an excerpt from Kevin Gianni’s Fountain of Youth Summit, which can be found at http://fountainofyouthworldsummit.com. In this excerpt, Dax Moy shares the remaining steps for the Magic 100 program for success.The Fountian of Youth World Summit with Dax Moy, one of the four most successful achievement coaches for personal trainers in the world. Kevin: WOW! What’s next?Dax: What’s next is know why you want it. To be really, really honest, most people don’t know why they want what they want. Or they will never admit it to themselves. You know what, they’ll say “oh yeah I would like a new Land Rover Discovery”, in my case you know? “Why do I want it?” Know it’s a great car. And that’s when most people start, “it’s a great car; made me feel, basically when I actually went through “why do I want it” phase, what I really, really, really came down to it was: it would make me feel successful, it would make me feel special, it would make me feel like I made it. Those are the obvious reasons. Because it is a great car, it’s got x horsepower, and the wheels are shinning; they are not really good reasons. They are not the things that I see that are going to hold you on course when things get tough, okay? But, when you know why you want it, when you get to the bottom of the real reason well, actually you know? Again, if I even dig a little bit deeper; for most of my life I felt poor, and I felt like I wasn’t going to amount to anything. This was going to make me feel rich, like I was turning into something that I wanted to do.Kevin: Right, fantastic stuff. So, we have gone through the “why”. So now; what are the next couple of steps?Dax: The next couple of steps. Know the price. There is a price for everything. You know, you want new shoes, there is a price. You want to get fit, there is a price. Too many people they enter into the beginning phases of a goal, maybe thinking about what they want it and why they want it, but they don’t actually say; what is this going to cost me? It might cost you in money. It might cost you in time, commitment, effort, and might cost you in things that; you know, if we are talking about health and fitness, the things that you may have to abstain from.
All I ask, in my personal training students here in the UK, we have; I just finished a team meeting just before I came up and some of my coaches were saying I am having problems with X, you know, and she is saying to me that she is unhappy with the right improvement that she is making. So, I said okay, let me see her journal. She has not been paying; we told her up front what the price was. We said no wheat, dairy, caffeine or alcohol. You’ve got to do your homework twice a day, which is, they are only 10 minutes homework actually, but you’ve got to do them twice a day, you are going to read these books, you are going to go to sleep at this time at night, you can’t do this, you must do this … That’s not just us being really butting up; you telling me what your stated game is and me telling you the quickest way of getting there.Kevin: I think is fantastic that you put it so simply because a lot of people do spend a lot of time planning how they are going to be healthy, and then they get right to the point where, you know? They know what needs to be done and just freeze. What’s the tipping point there?Dax: The tipping point is, very often what I have found is the people that; the people that struggle with paying the price didn’t commit successfully in the second phase, right? They weren’t really honest with why they wanted it.
Yeah, and nine times out of ten when I find the person who fails to pay the price, it is going to be someone who wasn’t really honest with themselves about why they wanted it. The other one time out of ten will be a person that once they get there, once they get to the point of paying the price is usually because they don’t believe that the paying of the price will bring them the goods. Yeah, they are terrified. If I tell you that the price is X amount of workout per week, eat this way, go to sleep at this time and you go to sleep later, you only do half the workouts, and you have changed your nutritional strategy; you have not paid the price. And you are not going to get the goods.Kevin: Wow! How do you practice differently now then you did when you first started? How has your approached changed with people, with the people you work with?Dax: I am going; I’ll rap that up in really one simple answerable word, its systems. I was always a bit of flight by the seat of my pants kind of guy. I am still very much in tune with my feelings and my emotive factors. I still pay a lot of attention to those but I’ve also tried to set systems up around things that mean; I guess I can reproduce myself. Instead of being one Dax Moy, there are twenty people in my studios doing things exactly the same way Dax Moy does them. So, you get the same workout with them that you’ll get with me. I guess that is one of the biggest things; system, I don’t just mean in terms of my business no, I’ve got a systematic approach in my year. Every single twelve weeks my family and I take a vacation, every twelve weeks without fail. I would consider my year to be spirally down if that didn’t happened. I don’t work Wednesday or Friday evenings anymore. No, that is not part of my system. I work rest of the; I don’t work weekends either anymore actually. It’s kind of like saying, look for most things there are some exceptions to the rule, but most of us, don’t live within the rule; we live within the exceptions. I think that’s what I was doing. That is what a lot of my clients do. That is what my students do. That is what a lot of my readers do. They spend their lives living within the exceptions.Kevin: Well, it kind of answers my last question. If everyone took and maybe you can expand on that; if everyone took one thing away from this particular call, what will it be?Dax: Set in place a system that will make you happy. For me happiness is the ultimate aim of life. You getting; you want to lose 20 or 30 pounds, whatever it is, because being the way and looking the way you look in the mirror at the moment is making you unhappy. With these things to be happy so, why not set in place systems that otherwise you go, you know; the best time to do this is on the days that you are feeling happier the most. And you sit down and you say; you know I am having a great day today. Why am I feeling so great today? I had a great conversation with someone today you know. I had a great talk with someone today. I went for a great meal at lunch time, I didn’t rush; I took my time; I still had time to read a book, you know. My desk was clear when I got into work this morning that made me feel completely different for the start of my day. These are all just ingredients, they are the recipe for happy and none of us have exactly the same recipe. For example, in my life, I also as well as my family; value adventure. So, that is where the twelve weeks vacation comes in. My vacations are pretty adventurous. I have lived in the outback of Australia in a camp cabana. I have parachuted on to the Great Barrier. So, if I get all the other ingredients and I go, hey I tell my family that I love them; my work is going great; I had a great meal and I read a book, but now twelve weeks have gone by and I go, God I haven’t had any adventure anymore; I start to feel less than me. I no longer feel like me. I feel that in some way I’m starting to diminish.
So, many people are going through life losing themselves. That’s because, quite simply, they are not following their own rules. If you don’t like the word rules, take that word and use the word recipe. You are not following your own recipe for what makes you happy. You know what it is; you know what the ingredients are. I need this amount of time; this amount of money; I need to read these amounts of books; this is the type of body I want; this is the type of sex life I want; this is this, this, this, this, and this, and this, and this. That’s your recipe ingredients but the only trouble is; most people either aren’t going out, you know; they are living on opposite ingredients, they are doing all the things they hate in life and they are wondering why their life is crap. They might be getting some of the ingredients but not the rest and when they do get them, they never mixed them together. What I mean by mixing them together is creating that system. Here is an interesting thing, most people are looking; I hate people all the time telling me that they are trying to create work life balance, work life balance, work life balance; you hear this? And, I used to be a coach that tried to help people create work life balance. It was only last six months you know; that is non-sense. We don’t want work life balance. Nothing in life is balance because once it becomes balance, it becomes still. Unless its movement, life’s action. So, we don’t want work life balance at all. I mean, you picture a see-saw right? When the see-saw is at balance, when its balance it is at rest; it is not moving.Kevin: Wow! You know every time I’ve interviewed and talked with you Dax; I’ve really gotten some great insights from it. This is incredible stuff and we are running out of time.
Let me do a little talk here because I have the Magic 100 program and I did it and one of my goals was to go to California and I had no reason whatsoever to go to California and I just put it down there because I just kind of wanted to go. The funny thing about it is that things fell into place, I mean almost within 30 days and I had a trip planned to go to California and I had a business meeting out there and there was an Expo out there, and then, it was just insane how it happened. Is that once you do set that intention and you write it down and you say it out allow, man it just happens. And, just as a testimony to the Magic 100 for me is that I have done it and the power of it is just incredible and so.

We all have goals but most people fail to achieve the goals they set themselves and never get what they want. This article is not just about goal setting anyone can do that but how to achieve your goals.

Let’s look at goal setting and how to achieve the goals you set by using some simple steps.

Set Your Goals

We all have different goals we want to achieve. They maybe be personal or they maybe business it doesn’t matter write them down.

Put them in order of priority and now its time to look at how to achieve them.

This trait is needed!

The trait you need to achieve your goals and anything flows from it is:

The desire to achieve.

If you don’t have a burning desire you won’t get anywhere it’s your motivation. In life you will hear of may people who started at a huge disadvantage and achieved their goals – They did it and you can to

Realism and dreaming

Many people when they goal set are really dreaming. They want something that is totally out of their reach and have no chance of achieving it.

When you set goals they must be realistic. They can be ambitious but remember every journey starts “with one small step”

If it’s an ambitious goal then you need to reach it in steps. So you have several sub goals (steps) that lead you to your final goal.

This will give you a sense of achievement when each sub goal is met and make the journey less daunting.

You will be focused, motivated to hit each sub goal and if you have the desire and motivation you will reach your ultimate goal

Time

Is precious and when it passes you can’t get it back, so you need to make the most of it and use it wisely.

Have you ever looked at someone and wondered how they get so much done? Well if you have they will be well aware of time management.

Time & Your goal

You need to work out how much time each goal you have takes and allocate time and effort regularly.

A key to time management is to delegate tasks away that you can and concentrate on what’s important to you.

There Is more to goal setting

This article is really a basic introduction to goal setting and our other articles in this series cover more specific ways to get to your goalsm but the basics of goal setting and more importantly, achieving your goals are based upon the following:

Desire – To achieve a goal.

Realism – In terms of what you want to achieve.

Steps – Getting there in simple specific steps with strict time management.

You can do it!

The fact is anyone can set and reach goals if they use the above format.

So set your goals don’t be a dreamer and set off on a road that will bring you what you want in life today.

ACT, Inc. (American College Training) reported that college readiness levels were 22 percent in 2008. This is startling and the numbers are even worse for low-income and underserved students.

Most high school graduates are not prepared for college success or to succeed in the workforce. My work experience gives me a unique perspective about the similarities between skills needed for college success and work success. Currently, I am a part-time college professor of college success strategy and career development courses. For many years I worked as a job placement specialist and also owned an executive search and recruiting business.

Skills needed:

Here are some of the skills needed for college success, which are also necessary for success in a professional career:

Don’t feel guilty if you don’t have these capabilities certainly many of the students entering into their first year of college don’t have these skills. Its all about persistence and interest. Don’t blame yourself or your academics if things get worse and you cannot secure  good marks in exams. Instead make friends with average studying students and have a good bond with them, once you both move well the luck starts, follow his style of reading, study materials, memorizing techniques, and passion. Try to copy it and most of the times it works because we are all humans and mostly our learning ability are same.

If this is not the case you need to keep trying some others success, training to learn is like building muscles the more your train the more it grows. No one can get a body like Arnold similarly no one cannot be Einstein in a matter of days.

Exam success will be more important now because of increased competition for jobs. Employers will be looking more closely at college majors, grades, internships, volunteer work, and related work experience. Students who prepare for high demand jobs and who excel in college will have the best job opportunities.

As job shortages increase it is likely that enrollment in college exams, university exams especially community colleges, will grow. One reason for this is that community colleges offer vocational programs that lead to jobs in a year or two. This is appealing to both recent high school graduates as well as returning older students who need to acquire new skills quickly due to job losses.

The main problem, as stated by sources, is that most high school graduates are not ready to succeed at a college level even they performed well on their high school grades.. What can be done?

Many colleges offer courses that can teach you how to study and learn more effectively. Effective learning strategy courses can help you to succeed in your other college courses by teaching you how you learn best, goal setting, time management and many of the skills mentioned previously in this article.

When you learn how to learn and how you learn best, this ability is also an asset when you go to work because you are able to acquire the latest job related knowledge and skills. College success strategy and career exploration courses are also needed in high schools. This would help students come to college prepared for success rather than failure, and they would have a better idea which college majors and careers are a good match for them.

Tips for learning:

Here are a few simple study tips that can increase your learning in shorter time for high marks in exam :

The key here is you won’t allow a room for tiredness in your mind if you allow it it will eat up your confidence level. Keep trying and I’m sure that you will get it soon.

The New Year is usually the time to take the usual resolutions in all fields of life. It’s initially a very exciting concept – one is filled with enthusiasm in the New Year and resolves to become a ‘better person’ that particular year, but what happens finally? As the weeks wear on, we lose the initial gusto and keep losing it in the coming months, till complete apathy sets in.

Have you ever felt frustrated by these circumstances and wished you could stay self-motivated, stick to your goals and achieve the success you so desire? Well, the good news is, your goals are truly achievable and you most certainly can get that sweet taste of success, if you follow some simple, but nifty tricks. Here are a few tips that can help anyone and everyone realize their personal dream.

BE SPECIFIC AND VISUALIZE

Set your goal clearly. Don’t be vague or hazy about what you want. For instance, if you want to purchase a new home, be specific and certain about the kind of pad you want. Decide on the size of the house, the location etc. Visualize the house as if it were in front of you right now. The idea is to give the subconscious a suggestion of the idea, so that it will start working towards the goal. The mind is a complex entity and giving it a clear input sets it working towards the goal, thereby increasing the chances of success. As they say, ‘thinking is being’.

IS IT WHAT YOU REALLY WANT

Have you set your goal because that is what you really want or is it because of some other reason? If your heart is not in what you’re aiming for, then the chances of success are very, very slim. Discover what your heart really wants you to do and set your target accordingly. You might want to pursue a course in the Fine Arts, but becoming an engineer or doctor might seem to be more prestigious. If you’re still going to enroll for engineering or medicine when you have no inclination for it, you’ll only end up being a dismal failure.

PRIORITIZE

We all have multiple goals to deal with at any given point of time. One effective way to attain success at all levels is to decide the level of importance of each ambition. Write your goals down on a piece of paper and prioritize them, with the most important one at the top.

THINK POSITIVE

Once your objective has been set, think positive and think big. Aim for the stars and you shall land on top of the tree. Try not to discuss your personal ambition with anyone else – keep it to yourself. Your ambition is yours and ONLY yours. No one else has a say in the matter. This will block negative feedback coming in from other people. Even a hint of pessimism can mar all your chances of success.

GET REAL

Be realistic with your dreams and know exactly how much you can achieve. Though stretching your ambitions is a good thing, don’t go too far with the exercise. Setting goals way above your capabilities and limitations only leads to defeatism.

SET DEADLINES

Instead of merely aiming to study well in the coming academic year, students would do very well to set deadlines or a time-frame to excel in their studies. Aiming to finish, say, 2 chapters a day, is very specific and planned, so that has a better success rate.

KEEP SELF-MOTIVATED

In spite of all the above techniques, chances are that the initial fervor starts flagging and diminishing. The key here is to keep oneself motivated by thinking of the several good consequences that are bound to follow with the self-discipline. It might be a good idea to jot down the pros and the cons of pursuing a goal on a piece of paper. When you see that the former weighs more than the latter, you begin to realize the exercise is well worth the effort. Then the goal automatically comes into sharp focus and 100% success is assured!

Provided that you follow all the above rules and keep sticking to them, you are bound to succeed in all aspects of your life!

Success, energy, passion and commitment are created by success – success at accomplishing the goals we have set for ourselves, and the goals that others have set for or with us. Nothing is more powerful than accomplishment.

Many of us never seem to complete all the goals and tasks we set for ourselves on a daily and weekly and monthly basis. We tend to focus on what we didn’t do, rather than on all the things that got done. The effect of overbooking ourselves is that we probably get more done, but the price of never meeting all of our own commitments can be very high.

The price is high if the effect of constantly falling short of our own goals and expectations results in self criticism and a feeling that we don’t measure up. And the result is less energy, less commitment, less goal setting. And we did it to ourselves.

It’s a balancing act between – on the one hand, stretching and keeping a high level of energy and commitment and confidence in ourselves and – on the other hand, getting discouraged because of our own self imposed failures.

That’s why the goal formula – SMART – is so important in setting goals. SMART, it stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Time specific, helps us protect against the burnout and discouragement of setting goals that are beyond stretch – that are out there with dreams and ideals – nice to think about but no help when it comes to accomplishment – today.

Here are ten ways you can ensure that your goals are leading to your success, and not to your discouragement:

1 – If you constantly end the day with a sense of frustration because you didn’t meet all your goals and plans for that day – and celebration of what was accomplished is pushed aside by frustration – it’s time you changed your thinking. And working harder isn’t the answer.

2 – Few goals, no more than three to five, are better than many. Having many goals is often the result of confusing intention with action. Many goals can be a sign of not wanting to make the hard choices required by priorities.

3 – If you use a daily task/goal list, after completing it, take the least important third of the items and put them in the trash. Stop overbooking and when you do get all the things done you committed to do, treat a “fun to do” as a reward for a day well done.

4 – Create short term goals that represent progress and then focus on it. The problem with the big, long term goals is that they are so far away that progress is hard to sustain. Example. If you want to do 12 pullups as a goal, and right now you can’t do one, perhaps a short term goal of one will set you on the way to 12.

5 – Treat your goals as mileposts on a journey, rather than a destination. Every step can be celebrated; every step gets you closer to your dream; but celebrate the journey to keep commitment and energy positive.

6 – Don’t be reluctant to modify your goals when your instincts and actions tell you that that is a wise thing to do. Remember, insanity is continuing to do the same things and expecting a different outcome. That’s true with goals. Maybe the goal of pushing for 15 sales calls in a day is less important – and attainable – than 5 quality interviews in a day. Realize it’s the results that count.

7 – Give yourself, and others, credit and recognition for small victories. You know, the call you made that you had been dreading; the presentation that your team gave even though they dreaded having to give it; the analysis that wasn’t good news, but had to be reported; the irate customer that was helped. Others may not know the price you paid to do those things, but you know it. Give yourself a pat on the back for courage and commitment.

8 – Be flexible. In a perfect world we may have control of our time and how it is spent. In the real world, stuff happens. Deal with it – don’t see “stuff ” as an imposition, just do it. Then get back on track, even if the track has taken a sudden right turn.

9 – Realize that you are probably your own harshest critic. That’s good – that’s bad. Use your self criticism constructively – that’s good. Hand wringing and regret for things not done is bad – real bad. And while I’m not a student of the brain, have you ever noticed how we tend to soak up the things that didn’t go right much easier than we reward and recognize ourselves for the good stuff?

10 – Keep an Accomplishment Log or Journal. Every day write down what you accomplished and feel good about it.

Goals guide us and help us succeed – and help us know what success is. Keep them positive and reinforcing and SMART, and watch your own success grow.

If you want to attain success in life then ability to set goals is a must. The goals should be effective. This is to say that they must be realistic. Once you have set your goals you are motivated to attain them. When you realize your goals your self-esteem and self-confidence boosts up. It charges you for the next assault. Goal setting is an activity that requires skill. Only then you can set right kind of and reachable goals. Many factors have to be considered while setting goals so that you keep focused and eventually avoid frustration.
While setting goals you can categorize them into two parts – Short term and long-term goals. There are some things that are very important to you and must be attained in a short time. They form part of your short-term goals. So decide what are the goals that are very important to you and put them in the category of short-term goals. Prioritize your goals in accordance with their importance. You can thus break down your major life goals into smaller parts making it easier to attain them. You have to evaluate your progress each day.
Remember, journey of a thousand mile begins with a single step. Listing your major lifetime goals is a wise move. You have to set a time frame for attainment of these goals. This will keep you motivated and will rub off any lethargy that may set in.
Monitor your progress each day. Revise your list every day as you may be ahead or may be delayed in achieving your goals due to unexpected events. Setting up a time frame prevents you from wasting your time and helps you stay focused.
Skillful goal setting helps to minimize stress. You set only those goals that you really want to achieve. These goals are important for your success and happiness. Keep in mind that your goals are realistic. They must be based on careful evaluation of your strength and weaknesses. Unrealistic goals are often the cause for frustration and stress and they ever remain wishful dreams. You feel good when you have realized your important goal and are working towards its attainment. So always set attainable goals.
Setting goals is a first step towards being successful in life. Once you attain a short-term goal, there is a sense of accomplishment. You get a shot in the arm. You taste success even though it is small. It motivates you to aim higher. Whatever skills you have picked are naturally utilized in attainment of the next goal. It supports the maxim that success is a journey and not a destination. Ultimate success is a series of small successes. Success in attaining smaller goals is a step towards attaining bigger goals. So get ready to climb the ladder of success!
What to do if you encounter failure in attaining your first goal? Don’t quit. Just review. Look where you have made the mistake, learn from it and move ahead. As long as you learn from your mistakes there is nothing to worry. Failure is the pillar of success. Use this learning to avoid mistakes when you are working towards your next set of goals. Incorporate the unachieved goal into your new set of goals and start working. It should be a challenge for you now. Thus you should have an attitude of a sportsman. Time to time review your entire goal setting skills so that you set appropriate goals and avoid disappointment. Always keep sight of the bigger lifetime goal to be achieved.
If you are overwhelmed with frustration go back to your plans. See to it that your goals are realistic. Reset your goals and start working. Never quit. Keep your focus on your most important goal.