“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens…” Ecclesiastes 4:1
It’s that time of the year. One year is fixing to leave and another one looms over the horizon with the promise of a fresh start. We approach the date with anticipation hoping to achieve our dreams this time. That enthusiasm, however, it’s gone by January 31st and out with normal selves we go, until next December.
This post is going to give you the cutting-edge tools to achieve your goals this year. Let this be the year you achieve your dreams and the results you want. But for now, let’s clarify a few definitions and realities.
First, dreaming is good but a dream will remain just a dream if we don’t set a realistic deadline to achieve it. A goal is a dream with a deadline. Remember that. Second, objectives are part of a larger goal, mini-steps if you would. Third, and final are the tasks. Tasks are the little actions you take to achieve your objectives.
Goal Characteristics:
Goals are written: A goal not written down is hope and hope it is not a strategy.Goals are concrete and specific. “I have better relationships with kids” is lofty and fluffy as a cloud dream. “I get home earlier so I can have dinner with my family and play with my kids”, it’s a much better objective.Goals are yours no one else’s: For example, You can’t have a goal for your husband to be more romantic. You can, however, drop hints with fireworks, neon signs, write it on a sign by the highway, leave him a detailed recording, a YouTube video… etc., etc. (you get my drift), for him to include it on his’Goals are realistic: Way too often we set out to achieve goals with unrealistic expectations and pat ourselves in the back when we achieve our self-fulfilling prophecy of gloom and doom. Nature follows an order. If you set out to lose 100 pounds in 15 days, it’s not only improbable but also dangerous.Goals have a deadline: “I pay off half of my credit card debt” is a great idea but not so much if it takes half of your lifetime.
Goal Achieving Process:
Don’t write down 100 things: but a few (no more than five) in each functional area of your life (i.e. spirituality, relationships, finances, health, etc.)Establish a tracking/planning system: I highly recommend the Franklyn Covey Planners, (Online version available) and or this little App I found a few years back called Life Ticker. At the heart of this system is the breakdown of goals into manageable units.
For Example:
I want to lose 20 pounds by June 2017 (a concrete and realistic goal):
Objective 1: I read at least two books on nutrition and fitness
Task 1: I visit the library, download books or visit the bookstore by January 7th.
Task 2: Using this information I create a nutrition and workout plan.
Objective 2: I join a gym or fitness club (if you are more of an extrovert).
Task 1. I look for signing up deals and offers
Task 2: I read reviews of my local fitness trainers
Objective 3: I set aside and schedule a time for working out and make it a priority
Task 1: I commit myself to set aside time for working out. I put it on my planners and make an appointment with myself.
Task 2: I recruit and/or get the buy-in from my friends and family for moral support allowing me to take time for myself to do this.
Objective 4: Get going, measure and record my progress. I adjust and change the things that aren’t working.
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Now, here is a technique you won’t find anywhere else and it’s at the heart of my writings. It’s called “task hacking” ™.
During your planning process, you carefully study a task, break it down into pieces and research different ways of ...
