6 steps to setting and reaching important goals in life

Change comes about when we are inspired to take action towards doing, thinking or feeling something different. Although we must be proactive, courageous and initiate change! Otherwise our status quo remains the same. The focus is on setting and reaching your goals.

To start you should ask yourself: What do I feel determined to change, inspired to do differently? Thinking these two questions through is so important if you really want to revel in the positive results awaiting you.

This article gives you a chance to think about how we convert your learning into something tangible that can make a difference to you, to your relationships and to your business outputs. Let’s take a look at the 6 important steps that make change happen.

Step 1 – Review your learning

No matter if you read a book or experienced a real-life event, you should reflect back on the exercises you undertook and lessons you learned. Think about what stood out, resonated or meant something. Collecting your thoughts and gathering up what have been the most useful discoveries is an important step before you begin translating those into goals.

Step 2 – Review your goals

As you review your original goals, you may feel that they no longer work for you or that they are too woolly, especially given your discoveries. This is normal. Visions and goals need to be flexible and adaptive, so use them as a reference point.

Step 3 – Your inspirations

When we are really inspired to do something, nothing stops us. Think back to a time when you have had a real passion, an energy to do, say a marathon, prepare for an interview or work for a charity that is close to your heart. Even though you are busy, you make time for inspirational activities.

Step 4 – Questions are the answers

It is important to regard questions as being the answers. Taking the three most relevant inspirations that have had the greatest impact on you, formulate each one into a measurable and tangible action using the following six questions:

What: will you specifically do differently and what will it give you?

Why: is this action important to you?

How: will you approach achieving this action, how often, how well?

When: will you do this, over what period?

Who: will need to support you and who is involved?

Where: will this goal take place? At home, work or socially? Be specific by stating whether it is at meetings, talking to your boss, when handling a difficult customer.

This now gives your actions structure and helps them become meaningful statements of intent.

Step 5 – Do and review

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit.” Aristotle

It is now time to take action and repeated action at that. Inspired by your commitments, you need to go forth and apply yourself. To help you, here is some guidance about making it a long-lasting change and not just a ‘five minute wonder’.

• Focus only on three commitments. If you adopt any more it will become like a shopping list, often overwhelming and soon forgotten. When you have changed those commitments into new habits, then you can identify your next set of actions.

• Repeat your actions regularly. The more you repeat, the more you hone and gain in confidence. After all, ‘Repetition is the Mother of skill.

• Involve people in your changes. Talk to people close to you about your changes, especially family and friends. With their inclusion you secure their support rather than create fear, suspicion or threat.

• Carry out regular reviews and document your successes. The more you assess your progress and celebrate what is going well, the more momentum you will experience. You will also be more in tune with what is working less well and be able to make adjustments.

• Celebrate your successes. It is important to acknowledge what is going well. Share those successes with colleagues, friends who will be interested, your partner or boss. The act of sharing itself reinforces the positivity of the action and inspires you to continue.

Step 6 – Commit to paper

If you like formality and structure, then I encourage you to adopt a form similar to this to help you.

With a stronger self-esteem, a newly landscaped garden and a new appreciation for the power of the mind, you are ready to move further forwards towards your authentic assertion.

If you would like to learn more about being assertive and reaching your goals, you shouldn’t miss the eBook “Mastering the Power of Assertive Dialogue” written by Karen Davies.